


In Case of Blue Scroll

by Leola_Majora



Category: Naruto
Genre: Adventure & Romance, F/M, Falling In Love, Hokage Hatake Kakashi, Masturbation, Romance, Sex, Slow Burn, Strong Haruno Sakura, Teacher-Student Relationship, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-20
Updated: 2020-05-21
Packaged: 2021-03-02 17:07:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 47,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24290305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Leola_Majora/pseuds/Leola_Majora
Summary: Cross Posted from FF.netIn Case of Blue Scroll the Hokage must lock himself in his office and pull his hair out as what he thought were memories of a long lost love turn out to be the memories of a mission he was about to assign his former student, Sakura Haruno.
Relationships: Haruno Sakura/Hatake Kakashi
Comments: 39
Kudos: 274





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey All!  
> I am cross-posting my completed work from FF.net and then plan on writing something fresh. I am hopefully also fixing a math issue I had when writing this all those years ago.
> 
> If this is your first time reading - I hope you enjoy! And let me know in the reviews if there is any requests for a future piece and what you would like that to entail. 
> 
> Reviews are my life blood (Leo).

# Chapter One

The war had ended and an era of peace had come. At least that's what it looked like. The 5 great nations were playing the game of peace - some better than others. The alliance between The Leaf and The Sand had remained strong due to the Kazekage and Naruto's relationship. However, tension remained between the other nations after generations of mistrust. Ambassadors, and Naruto, were working very hard to blur these lines and replace them with the bonds of friendship but change didn't happen overnight.

Tsunade had stepped down from her position as Hokage and Kakashi Hatake had taken over. It was during this time that Kakashi watched his three former students reunite. He had watched the hope in Sakura's eyes reawaken with the Uchiha heir's return and then slowly die again as he continued to show little to no interest in her. Kakashi had made the decision to separate them as much as possible. Seldom did he assign Sakura a mission with Sasuke as just being in the same room with the Uchiha caused the pink haired medic to be overcome with melancholy. Instead, Kakashi focused Sakura's attention where her personality truly shined - the hospital. She was in charge of training all the upcoming medic-nin so that they were prepared for the field as well as helping Shizune maintain the order and efficiency created by the former Hokage.

It took a while for Kakashi to become accustomed to his new position - especially in regards to all the secrets he was now privy to. He now understood why it seemed all those who stepped into the role of Hokage aged so fast. What he found most interested were the top secret mission scrolls that would come onto his desk. They would appear, color coded, seemingly out of nowhere. He would have no idea who put them there or where they were stored. There was a handbook that he would leaf through from time-to-time that briefly explained the colour coding for these missions but not their origin. There was a section in the back of the book that was blank save for a title, "In case of Blue Scroll". He assumed there was some secret to viewing the information on the page but try as he might he had yet to find a way to access it.

The book didn't even explain what the blue scrolls involved. At least he could assume that the black scrolls came through Anbu as they were almost always a suicide mission and he had been lucky enough not to have seen one of those - yet. The red scrolls were always seduction and he had an inkling he knew where those came from too. But there was nothing in the colour coded legend that even hinted at the nature of the blue scrolls.

It wasn't until 6 months into his career as Hokage, when the political world was maintaining its teetering monotony, and the village was finally getting back to normalcy, that he saw one. A blue scroll. He had come into his office that morning to start his day, and yes 11:30 AM was still considered morning, and there it was, sitting on his desk. He immediately turned to his administrative assistant to tell her that he was not to be disturbed for a few hours before seating himself at his desk and opening the scroll.

At the top, in big bold letters read **"FOR HOKAGE'S EYES ONLY. SEE PAGE 198 OF THE HOKAGE HANDBOOK BEFORE PROCEEDING."**

His eyes scanned this multiple times, looking for instructions on what to do on what he knew was a blank page. He unsealed the locked drawer in his desk where he kept the Hokage's Handbook and proceeded to turn to what he knew was a blank page. _It was not blank._ Kakashi scrunched up his eyes as he looked down at the page before him. Not only could he not believe the page had miraculously gained print but he could hardly believe what he was reading.

**IN CASE OF BLUE SCROLL:**

_Blue Scrolls are a rare occurrence. There have only been six instances of a blue scroll appearing in the history of Konoha and they have been dealt with the utmost secrecy. On the blue scroll that you have received will be a set of instructions that must be followed explicitly or else there could be dire consequences._

**_You will not have a choice on who is sent on this mission. The identity of the shinobi to be sent on this mission will be included in the scroll._ **

_To provide further background, the Blue Scrolls are sensitive missions involving time travel. We do not understand how our shinobi end up in the past, but they have. And when they do they have always brought the blue mission scroll directly to that era's Hokage. They are to be permitted to complete this mission no matter what - as it could be detrimental to the time line as we know it._

_If you happen to be on the receiving end of such mission, as in you have a visitor from the future, you will be responsible for noting all that happened during the visitors time, the outcome of the mission, as well as forwarding the Blue Scroll to the Intelligence Archive._

_Please read the details of the mission and forward it to the noted Shinobi or Kunoichi._

Kakashi's brain couldn't quite catch up with his eyes as he read the scroll he was holding. This all seemed like something out of a movie or book. He wished that Tsunade hadn't run off so that he could ask her some questions but, currently, none of them could locate her. They suspected she was on a bender somewhere. Sighing, Kakashi spread the blue scroll before him and began reading what the mission entailed. If his eyebrows could have flown off his face in surprise they would have. The scroll read as follows:

##### Time Period: Third Hokage (Second Term - 3 years after the death of the Fourth)

**Assigned Shinobi: Sakura Haruno**

**Details:** _Kunoichi arrived early Tuesday morning, aggravated and confused. She had a blue scroll but knew nothing of the details. She had been told nothing about her mission from her Hokage - Only that they must not know who he was and that she was to walk due east from the village until she found it before coming back. The girl seemed very irritated at her instructions but also flabbergasted at seeing me (Third Hokage) sitting behind the desk. It appears as if she wasn't informed that she would be participating in a Time-Travel mission. My concerns have been raised regarding the nature of the present Hokage, which she informs me is the 6th._

_Upon reading the mission outline I can understand her frustration as there were no details regarding the mission given by the 6th Hokage, who should be the one receiving this report in the future. The details outlined in the scroll are as follows: Sakura Haruno is an esteemed Medical Kunoichi, Apprentice to Tsunade herself in our time. She should receive no opposition in her medical decisions during her time with you, the length of which is as yet undetermined. Her purpose is to save the life of of an Anbu Operative, as well as heal him in anyway that she can. The Anbu Operatives real name is Hatake Kakashi._

It was at this point that Kakashi stopped reading to stare up at the ceiling.Seriously? He couldn't recall Sakura ever having been in his past. He would have remembered a pink haired girl. Sakura was going to kill him when she came back. He would like to give her more information but he had to keep to the time-line and the time-line clearly implied that he had to be a vague asshole. What _"did heal him in anyway that she could"_ mean, anyways? His eyes went back to reading the scroll in front of him while his mind desperately tried to find a memory that fit with the information before him.

_Due to the flamboyant nature Miss Haruno's hair colour please provide her with hair dye to hide her appearance and maintain her anonymity in the memories of those involved._

Kakashi's heart dipped anxiously in his chest. An image of a bright, young face - one his memory recalled as beautiful - flashed before his eyes.

_I trust this Kunoichi implicitly, so please take her direction regarding this mission._

Oh, how he hated himself.

_That is all the 6th Hokage had detailed for the mission. We supplied Sakura Haruno with living accommodations, and allowed her to pick out an appropriate hair dye in order to disguise herself._

As Kakashi continued to read the scroll before him memories from a darker time in his life began to resurface. Memories from when he was a lonely, jaded 17 year old. Not a boy but not yet a man. And a girl whose smiling face and personality had irritated and fascinated him to no end. A girl whose peculiar shade of dark brown almost violet hair had been burned into his memory as the one that got away. The one who he had never been able to find again despite all his searching. He laughed out-loud as he remembered her name, Saki. Blossom. She hadn't changed it too much then. Kakashi's hands ruffled through his hair as he leaned further back in his chair. He honestly didn't know what to do or think. He didn't need to read the rest of the report to know what happened - hell, he didn't think the Third even knew what _actually_ happened. Kakashi didn't even want to think about what it would be like when she came back. He was struggling to come to terms with the fact that she willingly let that develop. She at least knew who he was to her, or was going to be to her.

Kakashi glanced out towards the village, worried. Clearly he had no choice but to send her on this. If he didn't, and he had never met her, he wouldn't be who he is today. She had changed him.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross Posted from FF.net
> 
> In Case of Blue Scroll the Hokage must lock himself in his office and pull his hair out as what he thought were memories of a long lost love turn out to be the memories of a mission he was about to assign his former student, Sakura Haruno.

# Chapter Two

Sakura was going to kill him. Literally. She didn't care if he was Hokage, her former Sensei or her former team captain. She continued to stomp her way through the village, mind preoccupied with all the ways she was going to punch Kakashi into the ground. She had followed his vague instructions - walking for hours due east from the village, never finding anything or anyone that knew _anything_ about a damn _blue_ scroll. She had questioned him about his instructions but he wouldn't budge. He barely looked at her, barely even spoke. All he did was rip off a portion of a blue mission scroll, write some things down and wrap it up again before telling her that she wasn't to read it until she got to her destination, that it was top secret and the people she met couldn't know who he was. The whole situation had felt tense and awkward - like the last person he wanted to see right then was her. To top it off she had walked through a swamp! She didn't even know there was a swamp near the village but she had found it! Her boots were soaked through, she had ripped her favourite shorts and gotten the weirdest tension headache that no amount of chakra was making go away. And for what? For a mission that ended up nowhere. She wasn't one to give up that easily but he couldn't expect her to complete such a thing without more instruction. Who did she think she was, anyways? Some genin he could send off somewhere for amusement?

Sakura continued to curse under her breath and stomped her way up the stairs of The Hokage Tower towards the Hokage's office. She didn't even wait for Kakashi's blonde administrator to let her in, she didn't even see her around actually, before she slammed the door open to Kakashi's office, mouth preparing a slur of curse words for her former teacher.

"What did you think you were doing sending me out there!? And for Wh-" Sakura's voice cut short as she stared at the room in front of her. She was in the Hokage's office. The _OLD_ Hokage's office. Before Pein. Before the war. Sitting at the desk, looking at her perplexedly, sat The Third Hokage. Sakura squeaked in surprise. The Anbu around her were tense in preparation for a fight as none in the room recognized her.

"Can I help you?" The Third asked calmly. He studied her from his position, noting the Konoha headband that sat comfortably in her hair. Her pink hair. 

"Thi-third?" Sakura stammered out, eyes scanning around her - dumbstruck. 

The Third Hokage cocked one eyebrow as he continued to study the girl. If she was one of his he would recognize a girl who stood out as much as she did.

"Yes? I am the Third Hokage - who are you?" The Anbu surrounding him were still standing on guard, not trusting the girl who so casually barged into his office.

"S-s-s-akura Haruno," she replied.

"Haruno? Does Kizashi have a cousin or sibling I'm not aware of?" he asked.

"Ano," Sakura didn't know what to say. How was she here? How did this happen? Her eyes scanned the room before falling to her hands that were fiddling with the scroll out of awkwardness. The Third Hokage followed gaze, his own eyes widening at the site of the light blue scroll.

"Is that a blue mission scroll?" The Third asked, disbelief in his voice. She nodded mutely. "Anbu, leave."

"Lord Third-"

"Leave. Now." The finality in his tone sent the Anbu out of the room.

"Give that here girl - you should have said something sooner. Are you Kizashi's daughter? I did remember her having that shade of hair colour - but she or, rather, you are only 3 years old right now." Sakura's ears were ringing with the onslaught of information. _She was 15 years in the past._ Kakashi had sent her on a mission 15 years in the past and not said anything.

"I AM GOING TO KILL HIM," she shouted. The Third Hokage nearly jumped out of his seat as the blue scroll was thrown at him. Sakura caught his movement, immediately turning sheepish. "I'm sorry. Just, well.. my Hokage did not give me very good instructions."

The Third chuckled. "Who is your Hokage?"

"Ah - well he told me not to say. He is the Sixth Hokage, though."

The Third nodded, understanding that the mission may have stated that he remain anonymous. The blue scroll missions always were the strangest. "Did you not know that you were going to be sent back in time?"

Sakura shook her head. "I didn't even notice anything was different - besides a migraine that has been setting in since I walked through that swamp. I didn't even know there was a swamp around here."

The Third chuckled again, "There isn't. That is the time swamp, as some so eloquently call it. When one is chosen by fate to travel time it just appears. We don't really understand it ourselves and none of our research is very forthcoming." At this time the Third had finally managed to get the scroll open, and stared down at it, a small frown forming on his face. This did not go unnoticed by Sakura.

"What? What does it say?"

The Third handed her the scroll, eye cocked and arms crossed as he tried to think of a reason for the Sixth Hokage's vagueness.

Sakura's eyes scanned the paper in front of her, anger, anxiety, nervousness and a bit of pride bubbling through her system simultaneously. _Sakura Haruno is an esteemed Medical Kunoichi, Apprentice to Tsunade herself in our time. She should receiving no opposition in her medical decisions during her time with you, which is as yet undetermined. Her purpose is to save the life of of an Anbu Operative, as well as heal him in anyway that she can. The Anbu Operatives real name is Hatake Kakashi. Due to the flamboyant nature of the Miss Haruno's hair colour please provide her with hair dye to hide her appearance and maintain her anonymity in the memories of those involved. I trust this Kunoichi implicitly, so please take her direction regarding this mission._ Sakura collapsed into the chair directly across from the Third's desk, a loud sigh escaping her.

"I'm going to kill him."

"It's not much to go on... but it will have to do." The Third continued to scrutinize the young girl before him. Tsunade's apprentice. It gave him great happiness to know that she wouldn't be lost in her mourning for the rest of her life. "You are my former students apprentice?"

Sakura smiled at him and nodded.

"Just in the medical arts?"

"She taught me how to fight as well," she replied.

"Then you really can kill him, I suspect."

Sakura laughed, a hand reaching up behind her to the back of her head. A gesture that reminded him of someone he couldn't quite place.

"Who did we place you on a genin team with?" he asked.

"Am I allowed to answer that?" she looked around thoughtfully, staring out the window of the Hokage's office at the view of a Konoha before the damage that Pein caused. After a long pause she turned back towards the Third Hokage. "I don't think there is harm in telling you - it wouldn't change anything. I was placed on a team with Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha."

She watched as his eyebrows raised in surprise. "That is some team...I trust you know Naruto's history then?"

She nodded.

"I'd like to ask more questions but it is probably best if we leave it there. I will let you go choose the hair dye you like best, as his instructions basically tell me to let you do what you like. We will have an apartment set up for you close to the hospital. I think a back story and a new name are needed as well."

"We can say I am a visiting surgical specialist, or something of that nature. I am very good with poisons as well. The question is am I supposed to save Kakashi's life at the hospital or on a mission?"

"Well, you wouldn't be permitted to go on missions with him as he is an Anbu Captain currently. Do you know him? In your time?" The Third ask, voice betraying avid interest.

"No. Just heard of him." She replied simply. "I'll go by Saki, I think. It's similar enough to my own name that I won't mess it up. His scroll doesn't even say how long I'll be here," she huffed.

The Third watched her closely. He didn't believe for a minute that she didn't know Kakashi Hatake. Especially on a team with the late fourths son and Itachi Uchiha's brother. But for some reason she wasn't saying, or wasn't allowed to say - likely due to the fact that this mission involved him. "You should get the hair dye you need and then come back here. I should have a work permit and the housing set up in that time."

Sakura nodded and rose from her seat but paused as she reached the door. "Is Ryo the same here?" She asked pulling out some of her own money. The Third laughed loudly at that.

"Yes my dear girl, it looks to be the same." She blushed slightly before continuing on her way.

Sakura stared at herself in the mirror. She hated it. She had thought that the dark brown would look nice but older hair dyes didn't work the same way or at least hair dye had improved significantly in 15 years. She grabbed the box to read the instructions again - maybe she hadn't left it on long enough. Her eyebrows were the dark brown that she was trying to get but her hair had blended with the dark brown to become a weird violet - brown. It wasn't bad, the more she looked at it at least, just not what she had been expecting. Huffing she turned off the light to the small bathroom in her new apartment and walked back into the living room. It had come with the bare minimum of furniture, bedding and kitchenware - but that was to be expected after only 2 hours.

Her new name was Saki Hara. Not too original, she knew, but it would keep her from being unresponsive to her name if she ever forgot herself. Hopefully she would be able to leave as soon as possible but Kakashi's mission scroll had alluded to his injuries being beyond physical. As an Anbu Captain he could have undergone some sort of trauma but why would she get sent back in time to treat PTSD - she was better at healing broken bones or bringing people back from near death not healing the mind. Her hand clutched painfully, fingernails digging into her palm. Just thinking about that man made her want to punch through her wall. She didn't even have more than one change of clothes! Luckily she would be getting paid for her time at the hospital.

The Third had concocted a story saying that one of the Saninn had come across her in their travels and asked her to come visit their hospital for a short period of time to help out. The Third promised that the hospital would be well aware of her rank and she could get as involved as she wished during her stay. Seeing as they knew very little on when Kakashi would turn up nearly dead for her to fix she would have to spend her days there and hope for the best. Kakashi was currently on an Anbu mission with only one other person that was very high profile and dangerous. For all she knew he would be turning up real soon for her to fix. She could only hope.

It was weird being back here. To a time before Team 7. Before the Uchiha Massacre. She knew she couldn't get involved but it was hard to watch the village in all its glory prior to Pein's destruction. It was funny that this Konoha was just coming out of a war when the time she had left was just coming to terms with the era of peace as well. Sakura gazed out the window at Konoha, smiling at the children running by. She prayed to Kami that this was easy and couldn't help the smile on her lips as she thought about what her former teacher would have been like as a teenager. He must be close to the same age as her in this time period. Her gut wrenched uncomfortably at the thought.

This was going to be weird.

Sakura entered the familiar doors of the hospital that she had trained in. She approached the front desk, the desk that hadn't changed until the building collapsed, and smiled at the receptionist. The receptionist smiled back - eyes scanning her peculiar hair. Sakura refrained from rolling her eyes.

"Hi there, how may I help you today?" the receptionist asked in a fake voice.

"My name is Saki Hara, I am here on assignment by the Third Hokage." Sakura gripped the paperwork in her hands nervously. She really hoped no one asked too many questions.

"OH! That's you! They said the Legendary Sannin recommended you!" The receptionist chatted excitedly. "You can go right on up to the 4th floor. The Chief Medical Officer Kana is up there in her office waiting to receive you. Just go up the stairs to the right until you reach the 4th floor. It will be the third door on the right after that!"

Sakura pretended to take in her instructions - knowing all too well where Kana's office was. She had run into her once or twice when she had first begun to train under Tsunade. She was okay. Not an amazing medic or kunoichi. But they had just come out of a war and had lost their two best medics when Tsunade left. It was to be expected. On her way towards the stairs she heard shouting from the front courtyard. Turning her head she saw two Anbu operatives approaching the building - one supporting the weight of the other. She recognized them both immediately. She couldn't believe her luck. It was Yamato and Kakashi. Her eyes quickly scanned their bodies noting the blood all down Kakashi's front. Her heart started to run cold as Yamato began to collapse under the weight of the taller, and older, ninja.

She glanced around and saw that no one was all that concerned with the scene. Anger rushed through her body as the medic in her came alive. She rushed out to meet the pair. Pulling Kakashi's weight off of Yamato. He nodded in his silent Anbu way - watching her closely as he didn't recognize her. She hurriedly began to carry Kakashi's now limp body into the hospital.

"You!" She shouted at the receptionist. "Get 5 medics ready now and surgical room one." The receptionist stared at her with her mouth hanging open.

"But you need to meet Kana-"

"NOW!" She didn't wait for an answer as she pushed her way into the nearest surgical room and tossed Kakashi on the bed. Yamato followed closely behind.

Her eyes scanned his body for the damage. There was a hole through his body - a near fatal wound on impact. How it avoided his lungs and heart she'd never know. She began to channel her chakra into his body, recreating muscle and tissue. He had lost a lot of blood. She vaguely heard medics enter the room and begun to bark orders at them. No one questioned her. As she worked she noticed the purple hue to his skin.

"Poison?" She looked up at Yamato. She knew he couldn't divulge any information. He simply nodded at her. "On weapon or inhaled?"

Yamato tilted his head to the side before answering. "Weapon."

She nodded. This was no weapon injury. It was a hand. Whoever did it had poisoned skin. Only one clan she knew of had that. Only one antidote too. She quickly rhymed off the ingredients that she would need to one of the medics staring at her in awe as he watched her hand reform bone like it was easy.

"Wh-why do you need that?"

"Just get it!" She barked. She couldn't close the wound fully until she had the antidote. She scanned the rest of his body as the medics hooked Kakashi up to his IV. "How much blood has he lost," she said to no-one. She checked his pulse - slow but still there. They must have not been too far from the village then. The medic she had sent out came rushing back - ingredients in tow.

"Someone come here and put pressure on the wound," she barked again as she began to make the antidote. It was a complex concoction that would have taken the average Medic-nin a few hours to make. But Sakura was an expert in poisons and antidotes. Rather than make the antidote into a liquid injection she chose to make it into a salve. The poison looked to only be on the surface of the wound - like he had somehow protected himself. She rubbed in the salve, healing as much of the wound as she dared without closing it up.

"We can move him into a private room now. I will need to continue to put this on for the rest of the day before closing him up completely."

"WHO do you think you are?" An angry voice nearly shouted from the doorway. Sakura looked up to see a much younger Kana staring angrily at her. Sakura cocked an eyebrow at the woman in irritation.

"Saki Hara. The poisons expert -"

"I know who you are." Kana cut her off. "What do you think you are doing in _my_ hospital!?"

"Saving a life," Sakura said, unconcerned. She had completed most of the mission a day in. She hoped to be going home soon. None of this would matter then. She had never cared to play politics either.

"Barking orders at _MY_ Medics," Kana continued as she approached her.

"Oh? Care to ask _your_ medics what was wrong with him? Do any of them know?" She smiled back at the woman condescendingly. Kana faltered, glancing around the room.

"She closed up his chest and made an antidote," one of the medics said meekly.

"Closed up his chest? How?" She looked down and saw no surgical equipment.

"Chakra," Sakura stated simply, knowing too well that not many medics 15 years prior had been proficient enough in Chakra healing to be able to close up a hole in the body of that magnitude.

Kana's eyes took in the ingredients of the antidote and her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Those are not ingredients to any antidote I've ever seen. What was he poisoned with?"

"Classified," Yamato said from the back of the room. She could have sworn he was eyeing her curiously through his mask.

"How did she know then!?" Kana demanded.

Yamato continued to stare silently at her. "Poisons expert." She replied simply as she began to wheel Kakashi's form down the hallway. "I'll just take any spare room then shall I?"

She giggled quietly at the dumbfounded look on the medics faces.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross Posted from FF.net
> 
> In Case of Blue Scroll the Hokage must lock himself in his office and pull his hair out as what he thought were memories of a long lost love turn out to be the memories of a mission he was about to assign his former student, Sakura Haruno.

Kakashi still lay unconscious on the hospital bed. Sakura had been reapplying the salve to the affected area for over 3 hours. Anbu Yamato had never left the room and she knew he watched her every movement. The other medics in the hospital had left her alone, for the most part. Some had come in to watch curiously but the moment she looked at them they would scurry out. Kana had popped in at one point, watching her with a venomous look on her face. Sakura half expected the woman to start yelling at her again but it was obvious that Kana couldn't find anything wrong with the way she was healing Kakashi and thus had no ammo to criticize her with. Sakura knew from the wound in Kakashi's chest that no other medic currently at the hospital would have been able to pull him away from deaths door so quickly, if at all. The chances of them catching the fact that it was a rare poison belonging only to a very secretive clan were slim at best.

Sakura peeled back the bandages on Kakashi's chest. His regular skin colour had come back, the dangers of the poison long gone. She couldn't help her eyes as they scanned his form. He didn't look too different from the Kakashi she knew in the future. He was leaner and probably looked good in his Anbu uniform if it wasn't for the blood stains. The hair on her neck stood up as Yamato's eyes bored into her. She wanted the chance to study this new Kakashi but Yamato was very observant. She couldn't have more than a clinical fascination right now or else he might become suspicious or get the wrong idea. Sakura walked over to the sink, filled a bowl with water and soap and grabbed a sponge and a towel. She lay all of this on the table next to the unconscious Kakashi and began to wash away the salve and blood from his chest. She wanted to peel off the rest of his clothing and wash him. Just wash him. Nothing else. She couldn't help the smile and blush that began on her face - her heart thumping in her chest. She had never had thoughts like that about Kakashi-Sensei - beyond trying to see what he looked like under his mask. Her eyes glanced up to the Anbu mask on Kakashi's face. She was fully aware that even making a move to take it off would set Yamato off. He didn't know that she knew who they both were.

Sakura gently washed off the salve and blood - revealing the wound underneath. She had yet to fully heal it as she wanted the antidote to take full affect at the source.

"How did you know?" Sakura jumped as Yamato's voice startled her. A little bit of water sloshed onto her leg. She turned slightly to look at the young man leaning on the wall across the room.

"How did I know what?" she replied.

"What the poison was."

Sakura clicked her tongue in contemplation, staring down at the wound on the younger Kakashi's chest. It was strange, the Kakashi she knew was fast - especially with the Sharingan. He wouldn't typically be hit by such a life-threatening move. Especially not with enough force to cause that much damage. "I've seen it once before on my travels. The poison acts slow but if you don't catch it early on it affects the nervous system for the remainder of that persons life. It can end a great Shinobi's career." She wasn't exactly lying. She had seen it once before - just in the future and in the safety of a lab.

"How did he get hit, if you can even answer that." She asked softly as she continued to wash off the salve.

Minutes passed where Yamato did not answer her, so she figured that he wasn't permitted to divulge that information. In that time Sakura had thoroughly washed Kakashi's chest of any remaining residue or blood and moved to heal up the rest of the wound. As her hand began to glow her wrist was grabbed, startling her. Yamato had silently approached and grabbed her hand. She looked at his masked face but couldn't feel any warning or tension coming from him nor see it in the blank stare of the Anbu mask.

"Not here," he said softly, tugging on her arm for her to follow him out of the room. The hallway outside was empty - most of the medics and patients were on another floor. Sakura had purposely chosen what looked like an almost abandoned portion of the hospital partly due to the fact that Kana annoyed her and partly because she knew Anbu liked their privacy. They stood their awkwardly, Sakura only now noticing how much shorter Yamato was compared to the man she knew in the future. He must be barely 14.

"What I am about to tell you," he began slowly, testing out his words, "I am only telling you because I am worried and you seem more competent than the medics we usually deal with."

Sakura's eyebrow raised in question but Yamato did not elaborate. She nodded her understanding before he continued again.

"The fight was fast, but nothing too dangerous. Senpai has been acting strangely lately... doing things recklessly. He always took risks but not like this. I noticed it a while ago but figured it was just a mistake - we all make mistakes. But it has gotten worse. Him getting hit was not just a mistake - he could have evaded it easily. I don't know for sure but.." Yamato's head was bent, Anbu mask pointing towards the floor.

"He didn't move on purpose?" She asked quietly, heart sinking. She didn't know too much about who Kakashi was in his past - just that it had been very sad. That he had lost a lot of people. But she never expected this of the courageous man she knew, her sensei, her captain, her Hokage... her friend. There was a barely perceptible nod to Yamato's head just as they heard a crash from Kakashi's room. They both looked at the door, then at each other, before moving to open it and make their way in. The bed was empty, the bowl of water overturned, the window open and no sign of Kakashi.

"Typical. I hadn't even finished closing his chest." She muttered to no-one. Yamato watched her before approaching the window. He waved at her as he jumped out after his comrade. Sakura sighed in frustration as she looked out the window. She saw the smaller figure of Yamato chase after the white haired Copy-nin as they made their way towards the Hokage tower. Just as she was about to jump out the window after them there was a loud huff from the door.

"Making a mess in MY hospital and losing MY patients?" Kana's self satisfied voice caused Sakura to turn around and glare. "I don't know who the Hokage thinks you are but you are not compatible with my staff, and I do not want to see you in here again!"

"I saved the life of a shinobi that none of you had a hope in hell of saving," she snarled back. She didn't remember this woman being so mean - but that may have been because of Tsunade.

"Like hell you did! You just barged right in there and ASSUMED you knew what was right. You didn't even test for that so called poison!"

"If I had waited any longer his career as a shinobi would have ended. He could have died. None of your medics even noticed them out in the courtyard." She moved towards the woman now, eyes blazing.

"I doubt a young girl such as you could accurately determine that in the 5 seconds it took for you to have ripped open his shirt. You probably just wanted to see what was underneath -" her words were cut short as Sakura's fist came into contact with the concrete wall next to Kana's head. Kana's eyes were wide as her ears registered the sound of crumbling concrete. Sakura huffed aggressively before stomping out of the room. Kana turned slightly to see a crater sized hole in the wall - you could see directly into the next room. A medic and a patient were staring at her in shock.

Kana took a deep breath and chased after the strange girl. She couldn't do that in her hospital and expect no consequences. She wasn't afraid of kunoichi. Not even one that could punch straight through a wall.

Sakura stomped her way up the Hokage Tower stairs. She was pissed. That woman had no right to say those things - as if she was looking at Kakashi like that. If she hadn't been there he would have died - she was certain of that. And how dare he escape through the hospital window with an open wound on his chest! Who did he think he was!? Just as she reached the Hokage's Office door she heard a yell from behind her.

"SAKI! How DARE YOU!" Kana was almost running down the hallway towards her. She rolled her eyes haughtily at the woman. "Who do you think you are?!"

"Just a person saving lives!" she replied angrily as she pushed the door open roughly. Kana didn't take the hint and continued to follow her, shouting.

"YOU COULD HAVE KILLED ME! YOU STARTLED THE PATIENTS!" she screeched.

Every head in the room turned towards the two women at the door. The Third Hokage looked at her quizzically. Both Yamato and Kakashi were looking at her shocked - Anbu masks hung at their belts.

"YOU," Sakura yelled, pointing at Kakashi. His eyes widened and he took a step back. She barely had time to take in his younger face - or what she could see of it. His chest was still exposed - the wound had reopened and a tiny bit of blood had begun to pool out. She angrily stomped up to him and pushed him down into a vacant chair. "How dare you leave before I had finished! You've reopened it! What were you going to do - ignore it? A near fatal chest wound?" She continued to mutter at him as her hand began healing his chest.

"How do you know it was me?" he asked coldly, eyes glaring up at her.

"Hmm let's see, white hair, hole in the chest? Yea I'd say it adds up to one idiot." She said sarcastically. Sakura patted his chest roughly as the hole closed up completely. "Next time think before you jump, k?"

"And you call yourself a medic!" Kana said angrily from the door. "DO you see this bedside manner, Hokage-sama?! She destroyed a wall at the hospital!"

Sakura felt her face darken as the Third, Yamato and Kakashi stared at her incredulously.

"Do you have an explanation? Saki?" The Third asked, the slight hint of humor in his voice. Oh, how she reminded him of Tsunade.

Sakura's hand went to the back of her hair sheepishly, a smile curving on her lips. "She... pissed me off?"

Kana huffed angrily behind her. "I WILL NOT HAVE HER BACK IN MY HOSPITAL. I DON'T CARE WHAT LEGENDARY SANNIN RECOMMENDED HER."

"Tsunade, to be precise," The Third said. Kana's face went pale and her mouth closed. Sakura tried not to giggle - she knew the pair hated each other but it had apparently started a lot earlier than her time. "But that's fine. I think I'll put Saki on a different project. You three may leave. Stay behind Saki."

Kana smiled happily as she bowed and left. Yamato and Kakashi replaced their anbu masks before disappearing.

"That was fast," The Third stated happily. "At least one part of the mission seems to be over."

Sakura sat herself down on the chair that Kakashi had just vacated. "I'm sorry about the wall... she just made insinuations as to my intention in healing him. That I had just wanted to see what was under his clothes."

"Seems to be the popular opinion of female medic-nin who deal frequently with the Anbu personnel. I must say I am impressed with you. Tsunade really did train you well. I have only known of one other to survive that poison without complications and it was Tsunade herself that healed him."

Sakura smiled gently at him, knowing the story of how Tsunade has saved her own sensei, The Third, from the same poison. "I've never actually performed it on anyone before but the poison hadn't traveled very far. The wound managed to avoid his lungs and heart which is remarkable to say the least. But... the other Anbu operative expressed some concerns."

The Third nodded solemnly. "Kakashi didn't move out of the way - I suspected as much from the story they told. He has been acting out ever since Minato passed. He has lost so many in his young years and Anbu is a dark path."

"How many did he lose?" she asked quietly. She had never been told the full details.

The Third sighed and stared down at the girl. "His mother passed from an illness before his 5th birthday. His father committed seppuku a few years after that," he heard her soft gasp before continuing, "That defined him as a young ninja - he never broke the rules. His father had been shamed for abandoning a mission to save his comrades. Next was Obito," Sakura's eyebrows twiched at the name, The Third noticed but just filed that information away for the future, "They were on the same team. Rivals of a sort. He passed saving Kakashi's life during a mission. Uchiha too - that's how he got that eye. Then Rin, his female teammate. I can't go into the details on that one but his own attack .." The Third's eyes trailed the tear that escaped Sakura's eye. He saw her try to hide it as she stared out the window away from him. "Finally Minato, his sensei, 3 years ago during the Kyubi attack."

There was a long silence between them as Sakura thought about Kakashi and his past. He had never said anything to her. Never in any detail. She had heard from Sasuke that all the people Kakashi had ever loved were dead but never had the courage to ask him about it. He always evaded personal questions anyways. "Do you think he is trying to end it then... without actually doing it himself?" she asked softly.

The Third contemplated this for a few minutes. "Maybe. I will put him on leave for the time being and assign you to monitor him. I'll remove him from the Anbu roster completely until we figure this out but if another pressing issue comes up I may need to send him away. Would it be okay if I assigned you to these missions as the field medic?"

"Of course."

"Seeing as you won't be working at the hospital any longer I will have an allowance set up for you until you determine that Kakashi is sane enough to be sent on simple missions in a trial run. You, of course, would accompany him on these and receive the standard mission pay check." Sakura nodded along, head in a far away place. "I'll break the news to him shortly. I'll give him instructions to come see you at your apartment tomorrow to arrange a schedule for therapy sessions."

Sakura stood, silent and sad. This is not what she was expecting out of a mission. Far from it. Even of a mythical Time-Travel mission. How was she supposed to help him? Did she end up helping him? He was obviously still alive in her world but she had never seen him get attached to anyone, never had a girlfriend...or boyfriend? As far as she could tell. He kept to himself and read those books. She didn't even know how to treat him. Sakura knew the basics of PTSD and the myriad of other mental disorders that could plague people but she was far from an expert. It had been in her plan to study those things but what had been needed was the ability to heal bone, skin, muscle, and develop Mitotic Regeneration for her own safety.

Sakura was in a fog as she walked back to her apartment. She stopped briefly at the market to pick up some groceries and slowly made her way to her apartment. The Third Hokage's story had left her with a heavy heart. She felt guilty for not knowing these details about her former sensei, about a friend. Did he feel sad all the time? The man was a mystery - she had been excited to find out about his life - about who he was. But this was far from what she had thought she would stumble on. It was just so sad. She rifled around in her bag for the keys to her apartment, unlocked her door and made her way inside. As she closed the door she was roughly pushed up against the wall, hand over her mouth, a masked face with angry eyes staring at her. Her groceries fell to the ground as she stumbled backwards - the white hair ninja pushed her against the wall, effectively preventing her escape.

"Who are you?" his voice sent chills down her spine. He sounded dangerous, he felt dangerous. She had never been scared of Kakashi before - not like this at least. She tried to motion that her mouth was covered but he caught her other hands with his free one - pinning them above her head. If this had been any other situation their bodies would feel intimately pressed but she felt the coiled tension in his muscles. He was about to snap. He pulled his hand away from her mouth but kept it at her neck. Sakura prayed her eyes held no fear and that her voice remained firm.

"Saki Hara." She stated simply. "What are you doing in my apartment?"

Kakashi didn't move. "Where did you come from? How do you know Tsunade?"

"I met her on my travels. She trained me as much as she could before moving on. I've perfected it on my own. I spent a lot of time in rain healing the poison of the salamander."

His eyes searched hers, the sharingan tomoes twirling slowly. Sakura wanted to avert her gaze but didn't. She couldn't let him think he was intimidating her but if he used that to get information then the mission could be compromised. He seemed to accept her answer as he eased off a bit. "How did you know what poisoned me?"

"I've seen it before. The Dokukoto tribe whose skin acts as a coat of poison. They mix that with brute strength to force wounds open in your body. Medics are too caught up in trying to close the wound and ignore the poison. It takes 6 hours for the poison to kill you and 2 for it to cause irreversible effects on your nervous system. I know to heal it first and the antidote is finicky to make."

Kakashi's eyes traced her features looking for any tell that she was lying. "What did you say to the Hokage?"

"Nothing he didn't already suspect," she glared back at him.

He pulled away from her roughly but continued to glare at her. Sakura picked up her groceries and walked to her kitchen - he was still watching her. "Why are you here?" she asked as she began to put her food away.

He didn't answer for a while. Choosing to lean up against the wall of her kitchen and watch her. It bugged her. Sakura could tell he wasn't the man she knew - far from it. He held himself differently - more tense. Sakura couldn't stop her eyes from trying to roam his form without him noticing. She looked up and saw his haughty gaze staring back - she had been caught. She tried not to let the blush show as she finished storing her groceries.

"I've been pulled from active duty and you've been assigned to psychologically evaluate me." He stated bitterly.

"I know. Is that why you are here?" she turned to him, his body radiated hostility. "Are you going to force me into saying you are fit for active duty?"

"I could."

Sakura cocked her eyebrow at him. He didn't doubt himself at all. "You think?"

She watched as his eyes looked up and down her form, his face saying what he didn't need to. She looked weak and therefore was weak.

"Tch," she walked towards the door angrily. "Let's go then, training ground." He huffed in amusement.

"Seriously?"

"You beat me without your eye and then yes, I will happily say you are good for active duty. What do I care if you throw yourself in front of a bomb or an enemy weapon." Sakura threw open the door and continued outside. Kakashi walked with a confident swagger behind her.

The pair reached the training ground that would start it all. It looked slightly different than from when she was a genin. It was flatter. She guessed that a lot could change in nearly 15 years - especially when Shinobi were practicing at it.

She looked across at Kakashi. He had changed out of his Anbu uniform and into simple black pants, shirt and mask. He wasn't quite as tall as she knew he would become and his body was significantly leaner. His face was the biggest difference. The Kakashi she knew had a laziness to his stare that, in dire circumstances, would change into the one he wore now. She had not seen anything but a death glare on young Kakashi's face since she met him.

"Rules: No Sharingan," she began.

"There are no rules in the real world," his cold voice caused her teeth to grind.

"I'll only clear you if you can beat me without the Sharingan," she stated again. She knew she didn't really have a chance against him with it. Maybe because he was so much younger than the Kakashi she had typically gone up against but he was still considered a genius, an Anbu Captain and the legendary Copy-nin.

Kakashi sighed loudly as he rolled his eyes. "You won't win anyways."

Sakura launched herself at him in anger and watched his eyes widened momentarily before he moved. She was faster than he expected. She had an edge in this fight. She knew his habits, his tactics, but he did not know her. She knew that right now he would have switched out with a clone. Rather than launch at him again, like she knew he expected, she stomped her foot into the ground. She watched as his clone vanished in a puff of smoke as it was enveloped by the broken ground. Maybe this is how the landscape of Training Ground 3 changed, she laughed inwardly. She ducked as the real Kakashi's foot shot out from behind her. Sakura flipped onto her hands and kicked out at him, pushing chakra into her feet. She didn't need to make direct contact. She heard his intake of breath as he was launched 15 feet. Swiftly she ran towards him, jumped up and aimed a fist at his head. Kakashi rolled out of the way but was surprise, again, as the earth began to crumble around him. The pair quickly jumped away from the chasm - standing at opposite sides of the training ground. He glared at the girl in front of him and took in her appearance truly for the first time.

He didn't know where she hid her strength but it was monstrous. She was a petite girl, wrists and hands delicate, hair a soft violet-brown. Her emerald eyes glared at him angrily but he barely noticed as he just studied her small features - fragile nose, pouty lips. She was breathing steady, like this wasn't even a workout. Who is this girl? He had never heard of her before. As far as he knew she wasn't in any of the bingo books. Her attacks were deadly and her knowledge of the medical arts was beyond impressive. He should know who she was. He blurred out of her line of site to attack her from the left but she was ready for the onslaught of taijutsu. She danced away from his attacks like she knew where he was going to hit next. He decided to change his tactic and moved in closer - trying to grab her and pin her down. She smirked at him which caused him to falter slightly. This was when he lost.

Sakura's forehead came into contact with his own and he was thrown downward into the ground. She wasted no time in straddling him, pinning his legs between her thighs and arms with her hands. He groaned, eyes seeing stars as he looked up at a the blue sky in a daze.

"You shouldn't be so cocky. Just because I look weak doesn't mean I am." She said, a smile plastered on her face.

He tried to glare up at her but he was too tired to put any real effort into it. She continued to smile down at him - not moving from her spot. He looked at her, noting that her chest was close to his face, her feet had hooked to pin his legs down, her thighs gripped his hips. He could feel her heat through his own pants. She smelled nice, he thought dazedly. He tried to move experimentally but she just tightened her grip - her thighs rubbing against him. His eyes widened, happy in that moment that he wore a mask. He coughed and pointedly looked down between them.

"Could you...?" she followed his gaze and quickly shot off of him. Her face was as red as a tomato.

"So-sorry. So sorry." She waved her hand in front of her face, backing away from him. He continued to stare up at her lazily from his spot on the ground. She was funny.

"Come to my place for therapy tomorrow around 2PM, okay?" She said hurriedly as she turned back towards the village. Sakura had walked maybe 5 feet before turning back around. "Don't be late! Or else."

He quirked an eyebrow at her. Why would she say that?


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross Posted from FF.net
> 
> In Case of Blue Scroll the Hokage must lock himself in his office and pull his hair out as what he thought were memories of a long lost love turn out to be the memories of a mission he was about to assign his former student, Sakura Haruno.

The day went by slower than Sakura expected, but she supposed that was largely due to the fact that she had nothing to do all day now that she was basically banned from the hospital. It didn't help that she was nervous. It was rare that she was nervous in regards to her profession but mental injuries were a lot harder to mend than bone and flesh. She did not have much experience with treating such injuries either. After the war, Shizune had taken the lead on treating the many mental illnesses plaguing the Shinobi population. The plan had always been to complete that section of her training once things calmed down but the medics were stretched thin and needed expert direction in both fields.

Sakura spent the morning tracking down as many books on a wide array of mental illnesses in hopes of getting herself prepared. She always did well in theory but what if she failed her future sensei. Maybe she had failed him and that's why he remained so aloof in the future. Sure there were some differences between the Kakashi Hatake she knew and the one she had met 24 hours ago, but whose to say she was the one that solved that.

As far as she could tell her only purpose in coming here was to heal him because her version of the man hadn't told her anything. Sakura froze and looked out around her small apartment. Countless books were thrown on her counters and coffee table. _He had sent her._ Kakashi had sent her in the past on a mission to deal with himself. And hadn't told her a single thing.

"I'm going to kill him!" she yelled to her empty apartment. He could have at least given her a hint. He wouldn't even look at her when he assigned the mission to her. He didn't even tell her how long she would be gone.

Sighing, Sakura rose from her seat and began going through the motions of making tea. It always calmed her down and she needed to be calm for the therapy session with mini Kakashi. The last thing she should do is act out against him. Sakura needed to create a safe environment for the troubled young man if they were going to have any hope of making progress.

She honestly didn't know where to start. She would be in unknown territory and that always made her uncomfortable. To make it worse she was undergoing her first counselling session with the younger version of a man who was now her Hokage. Who had been her sensei. Who had become a very aloof friend. Who was a known genius, child soldier and feared assassin. Her stomach hurt.

For now she was just going to feel things out. Pull a page out of Naruto's book and just try to be his friend. That could be all he needed. She suspected he had closed himself off after losing so much, like a certain Uchiha she knew in her own time. She never managed to get through to Sasuke - despite all her trying. The only one who could was Naruto through sheer determination to be the Uchiha heir's friend. So far, it was the only thing she knew actually worked with the brooding avenger type.

One thing that always comforted her after a tough mission was coming home to the smell of her mom's home-made cookies. Sakura glanced at the plain clock in her kitchen. It was nearing 2PM but she knew that Kakashi wouldn't actually show up until 3 at the earliest. She was halfway through cookie preparation when there was a knock at her door. She looked up at the clock again - it read 2:00 PM. Sakura looked in front of her - there was flour and cookie mess everywhere. She hadn't even had time to put the cookies onto the baking sheet yet.

There was another knock at the door. Sakura wiped her flour encrusted hands on a towel and scurried to the door.

"Hello-oh... Kakashi-san?" Sakura meekly said as she opened the door to a stiff standing Kakashi. His one visible eye searched her form quizzically.

"You said 2 right?" he stated.

"Uh, yea - come in." She motioned for him to follow her as she walked back into her apartment. "I didn't expect you to be so prompt."

Kakashi didn't say anything for a few moments as he studied her apartment. Medical books were everywhere. A half drunk cup of tea sat on her coffee table. A book entitled "Shinobi Suicide" lay propped open - face down - on her couch. She hadn't even tidied up before he came.

"Why wouldn't I be prompt?" he asked. He noted that the back of her neck tinted pink as she made her way into her kitchen rather than take a seat on the couch. He followed - only because he wasn't sure how this was supposed to go.

"No reason," she said quickly. "I was in the middle of making cookies if you don't mind waiting."

"Were you hoping I would be late then?" He watched her place bits of cookie batter onto the baking sheet.

She didn't respond at first - carefully placing each chunk of cookie batter haphazardly around the baking sheet. "Most of my patients are late," she stated simply.

Kakashi continued to study her. Her body was tense and she was barely looking at him. This was not what he was expecting of a therapist. "You specifically told me _not_ to be late."

Sakura turned her head back to glance at him. He was watching her, leaning up against the counter, body as stiff as a board - not at all the Kakashi she knew. She needed to distract him from her mistake or else risk his continuing distrust.

"It's just a habit of mine to say that." She said flippantly. "I have a friend who shows up hours late to everything even when he determines the time." Sakura finished putting the cookie dough on the pan, shoved it in the oven and turned around to the young copy ninja. "Do you want what's left on the spoon?" she said with what she hoped was a soft smile.

Kakashi's eye grazed down to the spoon she held in her hand before returning to her face, his own eye blank of all emotion. "No."

"More for me!" she popped the spoon into her mouth and made her way back into the living room. Sakura collected the mess of books and placed them on a small shelf in the corner. Her living room had two couches, one full-size and one love seat, that surround a plain wooden coffee table. Sakura sat herself down on the love-seat - assuming that the younger version of Kakashi would feel more comfortable in the larger space.

Sakura watched him sit down stiffly in the middle of the longer couch. She hoped that she was portraying the calm of an experienced medic rather than the nervousness of the girl she really was. Kakashi continued to just watch her, paying particular attention to her mouth. It was with a small blush that she realized she was still sucking on a spoonful of cookie dough. She removed the spoon and placed it on the coffee table.

"How is this supposed to go?" Kakashi asked - never breaking eye contact with her.

"I figured we would start slow today. Just get to know one another, you know?" she tried her best to smile comfortingly.

He continued to watch her, expressionless.

"So, care to tell me a bit about yourself?" she could feel her smile beginning to falter. Sakura had thought her years spent with the older Copy-nin and the avenging Uchiha had more than prepared her for conversation minimalists but the younger Kakashi Hatake was even worse than the sensei she knew in her own time. After what felt like an uncomfortable 10 minutes, but was actually just 60 seconds, Kakashi shifted in his seat and sighed.

"I'd really rather skip ahead and get this all over with. I have much more important things to do."

"Like what?" Sakura tried as hard as she could to keep the irritation out of her voice. She knew perfectly well that he had nothing else to do. The Third had put him on leave from missions and his current injury prevented any serious training. He would just be maintaining his current physique.

"I'm a very busy Anbu Captain," he said slowly.

"That's on leave until his assigned medic determines he is fit to resume work," she smiled sweetly.

"You only won because I had been recently injured."

"Keep telling yourself that." Another sugar sweet smile. "Let's try this a different way. What do you think brings you here?"

Kakashi let out a frustrated sigh. "Some annoying little girl who can't mind her own business."

Sakura ground her teeth, trying to rein in her growing irritation. "Do you think the Hokage would have assigned therapy to you if it was not needed?"

Kakashi gave her a death glare.

"Have you seen a counselor or therapist before?" she decided to skip ahead like he clearly wanted.

"Yes."

Sakura sighed softly and crossed her legs in front of her. The smell of cooked cookies permeated the air reminding her that she needed to pull them out of the oven. She got up slowly and made her way back to the kitchen. Kakashi did not follow her.

A few minutes later she came back into the room - Kakashi still seated - and placed a plate of warm cookies down in the middle of the coffee table as well as two large glasses of milk.

"What did you see the other counsellors for?" Sakura slouched down on her couch.

"They made me go each time." Kakashi was no longer looking at her. He was staring resolutely down at the cookies. "What kind of cookies are those?"

"Double fudge chocolate," she replied. "Each time what?"

"Each time someone died." He glanced sideways at her, waiting for the sympathetic sigh that all the women around him seemed to do when they found out about that.

"How many exactly." Sakura asked while grabbing one of the cookies. She new from experience that sympathy would not be received well from the Copy-nin. Sakura had also learnt from dealing with male shinobi that if you tried to sympathize with their pain or imply that they had vulnerabilities that they would start posturing and avoid you as much as possible. It was best to act like it wasn't a big deal. Truth be told it was just facts. Just his history. It had made him who he was but her sobbing about it wasn't going to help him no matter how sad the situation was.

The Copy-nin watched the cookie enter her mouth, noting that she seemed perfectly composed and relaxed which was a stark contrast to every other person who asked him about this. Even the counselors he had seen reacted with the sympathetic nod, the 'I'm being understanding of your situation' tone of voice. All said the same thing - it would fade in time - try to get over it - everyone feels vulnerable sometimes. None of it ever worked. The only thing that worked was putting all of his being into his profession. Preventing others from getting killed. Protecting the village. The more dangerous the mission the better as he truly had nothing to live for. It let him react better and be expendable.

He watched as she chewed on the soft, warm cookie. She observed him with a calm, inscrutable stare. Her violet-brown hair sat at the base of her chin in a cropped cut - bangs pulled out of her face. She wasn't the prettiest girl he had ever seen but there was a fierceness to her emerald green eyes. He could tell she was pushy in her own way and was used to getting what she wanted, but there was a sadness about her that he didn't think she knew about.

"5... in total." The cookies smelled good.

"Do you feel comfortable walking me through them all or would you rather leave that to another day?" she grabbed the glass of milk closest to her and took a sip. She had said it so casually - like she had asked if the sky was blue that day.

"There is nothing really to say. My mother died when I was an infant from an illness. My father killed himself when I was 6 out of shame which isn't too uncommon for shinobi. Both of my team-mates died on missions and my sensei died protecting the village as Hokage." The worlds left him mechanically. He had said it so many times before. Rehearsed it. He never betrayed a hint of emotion. It was no-ones burden to bear but his own.

Kakashi waited for her reaction. Now that she had heard his rehearsed tragic past she would surely show the typical sympathy and try to comfort him. Tell him that its normal. That it happens in their profession. That it was okay to show weakness to her. They all did.

"How many friends to you have?"

"What?" He looked up at her. He hadn't realized he was staring at the ground. She was dipping a cookie into her cup of milk and looked at him innocently.

"Do you have any friends?" she rephrased her question. He was sitting stiffly on the couch. She didn't think he realized it but the moment she had asked about the people he had lost he began drilling a hole through the cookie plate with his eyes. His whole story was horribly rehearsed to make it sound like he was unaffected. Typical of the little boy genius that he was.

He stared at her, hard, before answering slowly, "Yes.."

"Anyone in particular?" She knew his type. She knew him when he was older and less affected by his past. He barely socialized. It was like pulling teeth to get him to do anything. He was always reading his smutty books and avoiding work. Sakura had only ever seen him with a few of the older Jonin. He avoided Gai like crazy because of all the challenges. She had seen him drunk twice the whole time she had ever known him. Once at Naruto and Hinata's wedding due to the drinking challenge sent his way by both Gai and Tsunade. The other time had been shortly after the war when everyone else had been celebrating. Sakura had found him drunk in front of the memorial stone mumbling things about past friends and a love he was never going to see again. She had never mentioned it to him.

"Asuma... Genma... Gai... You don't know any of them so why does it matter to you?"

"Hmmmm. Have you tried the cookies yet?" She asked him sweetly. "They are my mothers recipe."

"Uh," Kakashi looked back down at the cookies.

"I promise I won't look," she laughed. He looked up at her. She was weird but he couldn't deny that the cookies looked and smelt good. He grabbed one of the cookies and glanced back at her. True to her word she was far more interested in her nail beds than his face. To be safe he turned away before shoving the cookie into his mouth. It was still warm.

"When was the last time you did anything with your friends?"

"I dunno," he mumbled as he chewed. He grabbed the class of milk in front of him and sniffed it. He was sure she hadn't poisoned it but he had to check anyway.

"What do you do when you are not on missions?"

Kakashi took a sip of the milk through his mask and looked back towards her. Sakura had to stifle a giggle as the milk left a mouth line on his dark mask.

"Train." He looked at her in confusion - she was smiling at him.

Sakura sighed and grabbed another cookie. "Do you want to take any of these home with you?"

"Uh-ok?" This was the weirdest therapy session he had ever undergone. He watched her go to the kitchen and return with a paper bag. She picked up the plate and let gravity pull some of the cookies down into the bag before folding up the top and handing it to him.

"Do you have any plans for the rest of the day?" she asked, returning to her seat.

Kakashi was floored. This had not gone the way he had anticipated. "No?"

"Nothing with your friends?" she tried not to smirk triumphantly at him. Sakura knew this was therapy. Knew that she should be more nurturing about the whole thing, but this was the younger version of the man who had gone out of his way to torture her and her team in their genin days. He wasn't going to respond to conventional therapy.

"What's your point?" he cocked his head in her direction.

"Well... you have friends that you never talk to or see. From what I can gather, you don't have hobbies or interests beyond training and work. All of it stems from a need to remain unattached out of fear of finally filling the void in your heart only to have it torn open again by a comrades death."

Kakashi stared at her slack jawed.

"I'm sure the other counselors told you similar things, though. Our focus needs to be on moving back towards living rather than running," she mused.

"You an expert then?" Kakashi replied more aggressively than he intended.

"No." She said softly, staring out beyond him towards the window. She didn't add anything to her comment.

"We done?"

"For the day, maybe. I do think we should give you an assignment though. Something to focus on."

"Hn."

Great, Sakura thought, back to one word answers. "Go out and find something to do. Friends or something. Anything really. I'd like you to come back tomorrow with a new hobby if you can."

"What's that got to do with anything?" Kakashi said as he stood, unconsciously clutching the paper bag full of cookies.

"I didn't mean to offend you Kakashi-san. I just assumed that conventional therapy wouldn't work on you as you are too smart and I am sure if it would have worked you would have been able work through it on your own." Sakura stood as well, mostly because his height was even more intimidating when she was seated.

He looked at her blankly as he processed her words before he approached the door and exited without saying anything.

Sakura promptly collapsed on the couch. This was going to be a lot harder than she thought.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross Posted from FF.net
> 
> In Case of Blue Scroll the Hokage must lock himself in his office and pull his hair out as what he thought were memories of a long lost love turn out to be the memories of a mission he was about to assign his former student, Sakura Haruno.

Kakashi awoke with a start. Ringing in his ears. He could still hear the sound of his chidori and smell the scent of blood on his finger tips. He could still see her eyes lose their life mere inches from his face. Kakashi turned his head to glance at the clock near his bed. 4:00AM - another night interrupted by his dreams. This always happened when he had downtime. There was no point trying to go back to sleep now - he would just be awoken by another dream about one of the many deaths that plagued him.

Kakashi blamed her. Saki Hara. She must have said something to The Third Hokage about his injuries but there was no way she knew. She hadn't even been there. Yes -he had seen it coming. He had known he could move out of the way. But if he had the enemy would have been right within reach of Tenzo and the village could not afford to lose him. Not with the nine-tails still inside the fourths child. He, Kakashi, was expendable. His life didn't matter. He had no one to live for and if it was for the greater good of the village than so be it. He wouldn't off himself by his own hand so why were they so concerned?

The young Copy-nin rolled out of bed and looked out at his small studio apartment. Nothing more than he needed and nothing less. It had the basics. A kitchen, a bathroom, a bed and an eating table. It was close to Anbu head quarters and suited his purposes. He was rarely in the village anyways. Kakashi always managed to be out of the village for any major events or holidays. He never stuck around for friends birthdays or anything else for that matter.

The only thing new to his environment were the cookies. His superior sense of smell was plagued by her and her delicious cookies. Saki's scent was all over the bag she had given him. It was mostly soap but it still traveled with him and continued to remind him of their therapy session and of her. She was a pain. Headstrong and odd. He hadn't been able to stop thinking about it. About her. Kakashi wasn't even sure when he had fallen asleep because he had spent so much of his time the night before going over all her questions and his answers.

She had pinpointed him so perfectly and she barely even knew him. Saki claimed that he was running. Running from living. Did she even understand the purpose of Shinobi? They were soldiers meant to die at one point or another so long as they were protecting the village. Everyone ends up dying prematurely. None of them get a chance to live properly. Why bother going through the motions of setting up a life that was just going to crumble down. It was a waste of time.

Kakashi went through the motions of his morning routine. Brush Teeth. Pants on. Shirt on. Mask on. Hiate on. Breakfast - oh, right, he didn't have any food. The smell of cookies caught his nose again and he turned to look at the offensive paper bag. He would need to destroy it sooner rather than later so that he could have peace of mind in his own space. A superior sense of smell sounds like a good idea but in practice it was sometimes very irritating. His stomach growled uncomfortably - it didn't help that he had skipped dinner last night too.

Kakashi opened the bag and grabbed a handful of Saki's cookies. Nothing would be open now anyway, so he might as well eat these. It didn't matter that he was having cookies for breakfast because he had no parents and was an adult. He tried to smirk confidently at himself in the lone mirror by his apartment door but with his mask down he just reminded him of his father. Cookies in mouth - mask back up - out the door.

Kakashi spent the remainder of his early morning standing in front of the memorial stone thinking about death, boredom and Saki Hara.

Soon the village was awake and he was interrupted by families visiting the graves of their loved ones. He chose to take a walk. Saki hadn't told him what time to come back at so he assumed it would be for 2PM again. He wasn't looking forward to it but the faster he got through it the better. The Copy-nin began to plan out his answers for Saki's potential questions based on his experience with past counselors. He even tried to think of some questions that he had never been asked in the hopes that he could speed up the tortuous ordeal. It was during this that he began to smell her again.

At first he thought he had accidentally worn the same gloves as the day before - the gloves that had touched her couch, the bag of cookies or anything else with the offensive smell. But he wasn't wearing the same gloves - the ones he had on yesterday had a crescent moon cuff mark on the metal plate from a mission a few weeks back.

Kakashi searched his surroundings for the source of the smell. He had somehow found himself in the bustling shopping district during his aimless walk. He didn't know how long he had been walking around but it was nearing noon according to the sun. It was rare for him to get lost in thought and lose track of time but he wasn't his normal self right now. Kakashi's eye finally fell on the source of the smell - Saki herself. He stopped mid-step to ensure that she didn't see him, tucked himself around the corner of a small shop and watched her.

Saki was standing outside a clothing store. She was pulling out clothes from a rack out front of the store. Kakashi noticed that she seemed to favour reds as she went into the store to pay for the few items she had picked out. Now that he thought about it she had been wearing the same thing the last few times he had seen her. Kakashi thought this was peculiar as she should have packed a lot of clothes if she was supposed to be staying in the village on behalf of the legendary sannin.

Kakashi decided to follow Saki when she came out of the shop. He had nothing better to do, thanks to her, and he wasn't convinced that she was who she said she was. There was something missing from her story. He watched as Saki paused and looked around her. He knew she hadn't seen him but at least she wasn't clueless to the fact that she was being watched.

Kakashi continued to follow Saki through the shopping district. She paused occasionally to look at things through the shop windows or smile at children who were running by. Kakashi watched her as she stopped to heal the scraped knee of a crying child, patting his head as she left. Kakashi wouldn't have even considered stopping.

As Saki rounded the corner she stopped to look at a collection of books on display. He heard her scoff in disgust and fond laughter as she picked up a bright orange book and flipped it over. He could have sworn he heard her eyes roll as she tossed the book back down and walked away. Out of curiosity he picked up the same volume as he walked by. He recognized the author immediately - the Legendary Sannin, Jiraiya - his former sensei's, sensei. He flipped the book over in his hand to read the back. Why had it offended her so - it was just a romance. But anything that offended her was of interest to him. Kakashi glanced inside the book store and when the store clerk wasn't looking he deftly hid the volume in his back pocket. Why pay for something as small as a book when he was a renowned assassin?

For a moment Kakashi thought he had lost Saki but he soon found her exiting a bakery with a bag. He expected her to start heading back towards her apartment as she should be expecting him soon for their session but, instead, she headed towards the forest. Kakashi followed, of course.

It became harder and harder for Kakashi to stay concealed as the number of people around continued to wane. Soon it was just Saki walking by herself. By now it was long past 2PM and Kakashi was getting impatient. What was she doing out here by herself? How did she know the forest so well? Kakashi tried to stay in the shadows as Saki entered a clearing. He began to walk around the long was as stealthily as possible when she stopped and looked directly at where he was standing.

"Care to join me for a late lunch Kakashi-san?"

He froze.

How did she know? He walked out into the clearing. Saki had seated herself in the centre and had begun pulling food out of the bag she had bought from the bakery. He sat down across from her and glanced at the food - sandwiches.

"How did you know," he had tried not to ask. He didn't like showing curiosity.

She laughed lightly. "I was trained by Lady Tsunade. Besides, it's not like you suppressed your chakra signature." Saki passed him one of the sandwiches. "Why have you been following me all day?"

Kakashi gingerly accepted the sandwich and looked up at Saki. He shrugged and began to unwrap the paper around his food.

"Difficult as always, I see." Saki said as she took a bite of her food.

Kakashi paused and glanced back up at her. "What do you mean by always?"

Kakashi didn't miss how she froze mid-bite before acting like he hadn't said anything.

"I meant like how you would barely cooperate before."

"Hn." Kakashi knew she knew he didn't believe her. Saki was staring off into the distance and he took this opportunity to bite off half of his own sandwich.

"Did you work on what we talked about?" She pulled out a small container from the bag and placed it in front of them.

"What did we talk about?"

Saki rolled her eyes at him. She really wasn't what he was used to with a medic or counselor. Most of them swooned after him. The rest were at least nurturing. What happened to the girl who stopped for the crying child with the skinned knee.

"The hobby you were supposed to acquire? I am guessing you didn't bother to do that." Saki tossed her sandwich down between them and glared at him. "Listen, if you're not even going to take this seriously then -"

"I did find something actually," he interrupted. Her smug attitude really did infuriate him.

"Oh yea?" she said, raising an eyebrow in disbelief.

Kakashi stretched to buy some time, dragging his hands through his hair. What did he have that he could use as a fake hobby. Something that would infuriate her. He could feel the smirk cross his lips and was yet again reminded why his mask was so useful. The young Copy-nin reached back and pulled the orange book from his pouch. He was immediately rewarded with an unexpected reaction.

Her jaw dropped. Not just a little bit, but completely wide and slack. It was curious that she looked more shocked about this orange book than the knowledge that everyone he had ever gotten close to in his life had somehow died a brutal death. She was weird.

"I figured why not start reading the popular series my sensei's sensei wrote?" he tried his best to sound cheery, which was quite a feat for him.

Sakura on the other hand was freaking out. Is this how her sensei discovered his favourite novel. Practically his favourite thing in the whole world. Was this THE novel that he was always carrying around in the future. Had he discovered it _because of her?_ Her head throbbed with the implications.

"You are really going to read that?" she said slowly - testing him. Did he even know what it was?

"Of course," he replied as the book fell open in his hands and he began to read the first lines. "Why? Do you have a problem with it?"

"No... I just want to make sure that you realize you are a pervert."

Kakashi glanced up from his new hobby, not sure he had heard her right. Why would he be a pervert? Hell, he barely ever even looked at women that way. They were annoying. Saki was smiling back at him sweetly. He decided to leaf through the book in his hands nonchalantly. It was a romance novel so maybe there were some intimate scenes but that could hardly mean he was a pervert.

"Does reading about sex make someone a pervert?" Kakashi's eyes scanned the pages until he found what he was looking for.

"No - but to the extent of Icha Icha Paradise it does." She wasn't looking at him now, a faint pink tint to her cheeks. Kakashi found this _very_ amusing.

He looked back down at the pages before him and if Sakura could have seen his mouth she would have seen his smile falter.

_He thrust deep inside of her flowering moistness. Entering her again and again and she screamed his name. Her giant bosom bounced with each thrust. Her tightness enveloped him - milking him._

_"Oh! Takahashi! You are so big!" she wailed. "How is it fitting?"_

_It was in this moment that Takahashi knew that he truly, truly loved Kyoto._

He stifled a snort and thanked Kami yet again that his mask covered his face. He was not going to let her know that this embarrassed him. She was _not_ going to win. He would read this book in front of her.

Kakashi flipped the page around as there was a graphic illustration next to the passage he was reading. "What, this?"

Saki blushed furiously and looked away. "What are you doing!"

"This bothers you? A Medic?" he laughed. "I'm not a pervert - you're a prude."

"I am not!" her face matched the red she was wearing. "I have - well - no!"

Kakashi put the book down. "You have what?"

Sakura looked away.

"What were you going to say, prude?" he couldn't help the triumphant smirk that stretched beneath his mask.

Sakura glared at him. She hated him. "I am not a prude! I have.. experience..." She hated that she could feel her face heat up as the words left her mouth.

"Experience?" There was something in the way he replied that made her stomach twist. Sakura glanced up to his one visible eye. She had never seen him look at someone like that before.

"What have you experienced?" he asked slowly.

The remainder of her sandwich hit him in the face. "Pervert!"

Kakashi narrowly avoided her fist as he rolled onto his back. "You're the one who brought it up."

"Pfft."

He was certain that if she were standing she would have stomped her feet in response. Kakashi smiled beneath his mask at her. Mind wondering what exactly she had meant by experience. The orange book was still in his hand. He tapped it idly as he noticed a presence make itself known. He noticed Saki turn in the direction of the chakra signature as well.

"Hatake-San, Hara-San. The Hokage has requested that you come see him immediately." A bird masked Anbu operative said from the entrance to the clearing.

Sakura collected the remnants of their lunch and began walking towards the Hokage tower. Kakashi couldn't help his eyes trace the curve of her ass as she walked by. _Experience, eh?_


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross Posted from FF.net
> 
> In Case of Blue Scroll the Hokage must lock himself in his office and pull his hair out as what he thought were memories of a long lost love turn out to be the memories of a mission he was about to assign his former student, Sakura Haruno.

The younger Kakashi enjoyed the walk to the Hokage Tower a little too much, in Sakura's opinion. She had caused it. She had turned him into the well known pervert he was in the future. Sakura had always assumed it was hereditary - or at least nurtured into him by Minato who had inherited it from Jiraiya. But no, she caused it. All the books said to make sure the patient had a hobby. But to think that if she hadn't suggested he find something, anything, then maybe he wouldn't have always been reading that infuriating series. Maybe Kakashi would have trained them better as he would have been less distracted when he became their sensei.

Kakashi read the damn book the entire way to the tower. As far as Sakura could tell he wasn't even aware that people were noticing. He was a highly recognizable shinobi with a large reputation. Of course other Shinobi and even citizens would notice him blatantly reading porn as he walked down the street. The Anbu operative had left them. The village must have gotten used to Kakashi's quirks in the future because no one really paid any attention to what he was reading - it was just typical. It was to be expected that if you went looking for the Copy-nin in her time that you would find him either asleep in a tree, reading his book somewhere out of sight or in front of the memorial stone.

They finally reached the Hokage tower and began to climb the steps towards the Third's office.

"You should put that away," Sakura hissed as yet another person stared at the pair, slack-jawed.

"Eh?" Kakashi glanced up at her with the lazy look she associated with the man she knew in her time. The only difference was this Kakashi's body was just becoming a man. "Does it bother you?"

Sakura could feel the young Kakashi's eye studying her and tried to keep her composure. As it was she felt heat in her cheeks and knew she had a slight blush on her face. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing that it did bother her. Why was it that Kakashi enjoyed messing with her no matter what era they were in.

"You should read it," Kakashi added. "I'm sure with your...experience... you would enjoy it."

She barely noticed that she stopped in the middle of the hallway to stare at him. Kakashi continued walking slowly but turned his body to look back at her. Sakura opened her mouth to reply but nothing came out. Her hands clenched and she felt her whole body flush.

"J-just.. shut up!" she managed to ground out and stomped past him through the Hokage's office doors around the corner. She heard Kakashi chuckle behind her - a sound she had yet to hear since she met his younger self. Sakura didn't know if she should feel like she accomplished something or if she should turn around and punch him through the wall. If it wasn't for the look on the Third Hokage's face as she entered his office she would have chosen the latter. The Third looked both surprised and amused by the pair of them. Sakura didn't know how much he overheard but he gave her an encouraging nod. She turned to glance at Kakashi and noticed he was putting the book away in his pouch. The Kakashi she knew would have kept on reading but this version of the Copy-nin was much more serious about his work.

"You asked for us Hokage-sama?" Kakashi said, the model of professionalism.

"Yes. I have a mission for the pair of you," The Third tossed a scroll towards Kakashi.

"Both of us?" Kakashi answered slowly as he opened the scroll and read its contents.

"Yes, I'll need the two of you to accompany another couple," the Third sighed as he watched Kakashi hand the scroll to Sakura to read over. "I'll be sending you two with Genma Shiranui and Anko Mitarashi to Machiko Village. This is a big tourist spot for couples especially during this time of year as it is right in the middle of their couples festival. The village had requested a pair of shinobi to investigate a series of disappearances of young couples visiting. As you can guess this is very harmful to the village reputation as over 15 couples have disappeared since the opening of the festival. We sent two shinobi over a week ago to investigate, Asuma Sarutobi and Kurenai Yuhi. They had begun to find evidence of struggle and bodily harm when they too went missing."

Sakura's heart sank for the man in front of them. His own son had gone missing. No wonder he pulled Kakashi out of his forced leave to investigate.

"Why Saki though, she is just a visitor to the village?" asked Kakashi. Sakura tried not to shoot him a glare - she was more than capable of handling this mission.

"As you are under medical leave, Kakashi, I cannot send you without your attending medic. The other option was Might Gai and a poor Hyuga girl and I don't think I need to explain why I chose not to send that pair." The Third smiled wryly at them. "Kakashi you will be the lead on this mission and be paired with Saki here. You two are to act like a real couple on a romantic getaway with your friends in the hopes that you will be targeted. I also expect you to find my son and miss Yuhi as soon as possible."

Sakura felt her stomach dip. She had been on many missions with Kakashi in her time. A lot of them had been recon or undercover but they had never been a 'couple'. At most he had been her uncle - once even her father (much to his distaste). But this wasn't the Kakashi that she knew. He was much younger and troubled. Sakura tried to glance sideways at him to see if he was reacting to this news but he stood at attention - waiting to be dismissed - no indication that he had any opinion on the mission whatsoever.

"Your team mates are waiting at the gates as we speak. Please meet them as soon as you are able. Saki - could you please stay back for a moment before you go pack?" The Third Hokage waved Kakashi away. Sakura tried to see if Kakashi reacted to any of this but he was gone before she could meet his eyes.

"I know I said I wouldn't send him out unless absolutely necessary but -"

"No need to explain, Hokage-sama. Asuma-sensei is your son, after all," she smiled back at the older man.

"Ah, sensei? So, he must be okay then." The Third smiled back at her.

"AH, sorry!" she said in panic.

"Don't be sorry, girl. You comforted an old man. But does that mean you may know Kakashi-san in a similar aspect?"

Sakura tried to keep her face blank but wasn't sure how successful she was. "You know I can't answer that, sir."

The Third's laughter followed her down the hallway as she exited the building. Butterflies fluttered in the pit of her stomach.

###### 

Sakura was the last to arrive at the gates of the village. Teenage versions of Genma and Anko leaned up against a large pillar. Kakashi was a few feet away reading Icha Icha, much to Sakura's embarrassment. He barely bothered to look up as she approached them all. Genma and Anko turned to look at her. Genma gave her the once over and smiled cockily - at least that much hadn't changed. Sakura had to admit Genma had been easy on the eyes when he was younger. Anko looked a lot more hopeful and cheerful than the woman she knew in the future - who was downright terrifying. Sakura didn't know too much about either of them - mostly just through their reputations. Neither had become Jonin Sensei but both were specialists in their own way. Unfortunately, Sakura's talents had never given her the opportunity to work with ether of them for long periods of time.

"Who's this, Kakashi? Some new Anbu hottie?" Genma pushed himself off the wall towards her. "Makes me wish I wasn't assigned little Anko here."

"Shutup, asshole." Anko shouted.

"Saki Hara. A medic trained by Lady Tsunade. Saki - these are Genma and Anko," Kakashi pocketed his book.

"Lady Tsunade? I've been trained by Lord Orochimaru - surprised we haven't met yet!" Anko said cockily.

Sakura had forgotten about Anko's connection with the other Sannin. "I didn't get to travel with her. Lady Tsunade just spent a lot of time in my village after the war and taught me a lot of valuable things. I had already been working in the hospital there but she saw my potential and really helped me out." Sakura had started to walk out of the village hoping that the others would follow and the conversation would shift to the mission rather than herself. "I came here to learn more from the hospital and become a part of the village."

"Is that why you got banned your first day there?" Kakashi's voice came from beside her - closer than she had anticipated. Sakura felt her body jump in surprise and prayed to Kami that none of the others had noticed. This whole situation was really putting her on edge.

"I can't help it if that woman is a moron." Sakura said as she glared at him out of the corner of her eye. Neither of them noticed the shocked looks exchanged by their other two team members.

"How do you know each other?" Genma asked.

"Classified." Kakashi said coldly. Sakura rolled her eyes but decided not to add anything.

"We'll reach Machiko Village by nightfall so we should change into civilian clothes in an hour or so." Anko said - not caring for the back story of the pretty brunette and Konoha's most eligible bachelor. "You guys good to be all lovey-dovey starting then? We don't know how far back potential surveillance goes. We can't risk being found out if we want to find Sarutobi and Yuhi."

"Don't worry," Kakashi replied as he leaned in slightly to Saki and added, "especially with your _experience._ "

Sakura felt all the blood in her body rush to her face. His voice had sent a chill down her spine. Kakashi was ahead of them seconds later and Sakura didn't even have time to give him a fowl look in response.

"Never thought I'd see the day," Genma said from behind Sakura.

"Me neither," Anko said with a laugh.

"What?" Sakura asked dazedly.

"The ice-cold Copy-nin flirting," Genma chuckled.

"-I was not!"

"-He was not!"

Both Kakashi and Sakura had stopped in their tracks to glare at Genma and Anko. The pair laughed in unison as they continued down the road. Sakura followed with her eyes until her sight landed on Kakashi. Kakashi looked back as if considering something before quickly turning away. Sakura's mouth fell open in shock as her heartbeat fluttered in her chest. Sakura did not understand herself at all. This was her sensei. Her weird, pervy, lazy, genius of a sensei. The man who watched her grow up. The man who watched her fall in love and get it thrown in her face. The man who saved her life countless time. A man who was 14 years older than her. A person who she should feel disgust and terror at the prospect of him flirting with her. But terror is not what she felt. Her heart was beating faster. Her face was tingling. Her stomach bubbled with excitement rather than anxiety. She even felt the beginnings of a smile on her lips and the sudden urge to screech and hide her face. It wasn't the old, lazy Kakashi from her time that had looked at her. It wasn't her sensei's lazy walk that she watched in front of her. It was the swagger of a young man she was only just getting to know. A guy her age. Who looked at her _like that._

Sakura took a deep breath and pushed all of that down. That's _not_ happening. She was mistaken. No way could that ever be real. Young Kakashi was just getting back at her for impacting his life - for making him come to terms with his past. He was deliberately reading that to mess with her. Everything he was doing was to mess with her. Sakura ignored the part of her psyche reminding her that Kakashi continued to read those books in her time. _Obsessively._

"You coming?" Genma yelled back at her. "What did you do to her?"

Kakashi ignored him as he took the lead again. Sakura smiled sheepishly as she caught up. This was going to be weird.

An hour later the four separated by gender to change into their civilian wear. Sakura changed her standard red tunic for a light blue yukata. She made sure to conceal all her weapons and tucked her hair up with senbon that looked like hair accessories. She could barely ignore the bubbling of excitement in her stomach. She had never really seen Kakashi in true civilian clothing and the prospect of seeing the younger one that way had her more excited than she thought she'd be. She wondered if young Kakashi would still be wearing his mask. If she could come away from this mission having seen what was underneath the elusive Copy-nin's mask then she may reconsider pummeling his older self in the future.

Sakura turned to see if Anko was ready to head back to the boys and was yet again reminded that she was not in her own time. Anko looked so young in comparison to the woman from her own era. Sakura wasn't sure how old Anko was in the future but right now she looked a lot younger than herself. Anko was waiting impatiently against the trunk of a large tree looking uncomfortable in her own light purple yukata. Sakura couldn't help but wonder if Anko was going to be able to convincingly act like she was young and in love.

"Ready, princess?" Anko asked sarcastically. Anko didn't wait for a retort before she had turned on her heel and headed back towards the boys. Sakura followed mutely, not quite sure how to reply to her attitude.

They reached the road where Kakashi and Genma were in silence. Sakura swore to herself when she looked at the young version of her future sensei. He was still wearing his infernal mask. He had barely even changed. His standard issue flak jacket was missing as was his headband. He had no weapons on him - that she could see- and he had switched his shoes to simple boots. The rest was almost the exact same. Black pants and black long sleeved shirt attached to his mask.

"How are you supposed to pass as a civilian in that?" Sakura asked as they all continued on their way.

"I do all the time," was his simple reply.

"WHAT do you think you're doing?!" Anko shouted. Sakura looked ahead towards the other couple. Genma was backing away from a very angry looking Anko.

"We are a couple." Genma emphasized. Anko's mouth hung open in silence as she lowered her other fist and took her position next too Genma again - a bright blush staining her cheeks. Sakura glanced sideways to her own mission partner to see what he thought of the situation but his nose was buried behind the cover of a bright orange novel. She clenched her fists, ground her teeth and held back every urge in her body telling her to punch him into the dirt. When was she going to get back to her normal life?

###### 

Machiko Village's love festival was famous even in Sakura's time but she had never had the opportunity to go. She had never had anyone to go with. The festival was created around a local myth about a injured ninja who fell in love with a young medic who found him in the forest outside the city. He was from the enemy nation during one of the great battles in history, it changed depending on who told the story, but the young medic couldn't just leave a man to die in the forest alone. She nursed him for months until he reached his full health again. The night that he was finally able to go back to fighting for his country there was a meteor shower. It was during this meteor shower that the two warring nations decided to attack each other just outside Machiko village. The young lovers couldn't bear the thought of fighting against each other and begged the other to join their side. This is where the story would change from person to person as some claimed that the pair ran away together and hid from their home nations. While others said that they were both killed during the attack and their bodies were found together in a deathly embrace.

It was said that any young couple who spent the night of the meteor shower together would live happily ever after. Sakura wasn't sure where this part came from - as the story sounded more tragic than anything - but had always dreamed of coming to the festival with Sasuke. Now she was here in the past with her 17 year old sensei.

So far, there were no patterns to the disappearances. Genma and Anko went to stay at the Inn that Asuma and Kurenai disappeared from. Sakura had expected that they would stay there too but Kakashi told her that there hadn't been any other rooms available so the Hokage had put them somewhere else.

Evening entertainment had begun to set up and the smell of food stalls and great restaurants filled the streets. They had made plans to meet up with Genma and Anko the following day. Genma was going to search the room that Asuma and Kurenai had last been seen in for clues. It was Kakashi and Sakura's job to wander the village and draw attention as an adorable couple in the hopes that that would draw the culprits attention. It had been obvious from Anko's demeanor that she was not going to be able to keep up appearances for very long - especially with handsy Genma. Sakura wasn't sure she would fare better especially when considering that Asuma and Kurenai ended up together in the future. The pair had obvious sexual tension that would have helped them on a mission like this.

Sakura was surprised when they arrived at their hotel. Genma and Anko were staying in a modest Inn but the place they were standing in front of now was anything but modest.

"Seriously?" Kakashi mumbled as they entered. He sauntered up to reception, was handed two room keys and motioned for Sakura to follow. The girls behind the reception counter were staring at the pair of them and giggling.

Their room was a few floors up and it seemed that the higher they went the more fancy the décor got. Sakura had never been in a place this fancy. Everything was gilded. _Everything._ Sakura didn't understand how they gilded the carpet but they managed to. She chanced a glance at Kakashi but his eye was staring resolutely forward as he scanned the door numbers. He had barely spoken a word to her since they got to the village. At least his book was away...for now.

Eventually he came to a stop outside a room. Sakura could have sworn she saw him fumble with the key but there was no way any version of Kakashi would fumble. She followed him into the room quietly. The whole situation felt awkward but she nearly forgot herself as she saw the room before her.

It was huge. The room was twice the size of her entire apartment. There was a fire place and lounge area with two of the comfiest couches she had ever seen. The bed was a grandeur looking 4 poster king. There were double doors leading to the balcony that overlooked the village and the festival below. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the bathroom and nearly fainted. It was marble. It had a huge bath tub. The size of the public baths back in Konoha. Sakura felt like squealing in excitement. She tossed her bag on one of the couches and nearly jumped onto the large bed.

"This is so cool!" she laughed and looked at her partner.

Kakashi was stiffly searching the room for any signs of tampering. He began to set up seals around all the entrances designed to prevent them from hearing their conversations clearly. He wasn't going to prevent people from coming in but he was going to make sure they never caught whiff that the pair of them were ninja. When he was finished he tossed his bag on the coffee table and looked around. It was a large room and Saki was very happy about it. He, however, was full of dread.

He hated these kinds of missions. Ask him to slaughter an entire crime syndicate - no problem. Tell him to pretend to be someone's boyfriend - no, just no. But that was the mission and they needed to be convincing and he was never one to be half-assed about a mission. He watched as Saki jumped on the bed like a little girl. Her yukata became ruffled as it bunched up around her legs. Kakashi couldn't stop his eye from grazing up her body. His gaze only stopped when he noticed she was staring at him and blushing furiously.

Kakashi quickly looked away and began to scratch the back of his head. He definitely had not meant to do that but the image of her on the bed reminded him so much of a scene from the orange novel in his back pocket that he couldn't help himself. He had never had much interest in girls around the village. Not that he didn't have any experience. He just never actively sought it out beyond rare moments on his more dangerous Anbu missions. Whatever these books were arousing in him needed to be put aside for now.

Kakashi looked back towards Sakura who had straightened out her clothes and gotten up from the big bed.

"I guess we should get out there and walk around," she suggested shyly.

Kakashi hated how awkward this was. He wasn't even sure why he had become awkward in the first place. He just couldn't stop thinking about doing other things with her in this room. Both because of the mission and because he wanted to. He had never wanted to before. _Why did he want to?_

Sakura had started to walk past him - taking his silence as indication that they should leave. Kakashi uncharacteristically let his emotions get the better of him and grabbed her elbow to stop her. It didn't take much pressure to pull her closer to him. This is for the mission and nothing else, he reassured himself.

"We should probably take care of something before we get out there," he said dryly.

"Eh?" Kakashi did not find her flustered face cute. Not cute at all.

Rather than answer her Kakashi just raised his eyebrow and pulled her closer to him. Sakura couldn't help but notice that even at this age he towered over her.

"What are you doing?" she asked softly. Her heart was hammering in her chest and she should be pulling away. She didn't know why she wasn't pulling away.

"Do I seriously need to explain?" Kakashi mumbled.

She scowled at him in return and tried to pull away but she didn't budge. Kakashi took a step forward. Her body now almost flush with his - she was forced to look up.

"Experience, Saki," His face was getting awfully close. "I thought with all that experience you'd be able to figure out what we need to do right now."

Sakura's face was instantly the colour of a tomato and she tried to pull away again. She closed her eyes and tried to put distance between them but was held still by the younger Kakashi's arms.

"Don't you da-mmph," her eyes shot open. His lips. His lips! Right in front of her, touching her lips with his own, was Kakashi. _Kakashi was kissing her._ And she was letting him. He pressed into her and nipped at the bottom of her lip. She gasped in surprise which only allowed him to deepen the kiss further. Sakura could feel him pushing her backwards until her back hit the post of the bed. His eyes were closed which she knew was normal but still seemed weird. His hands wrapped themselves around her waist and he managed to both pull her more towards his own body and push her more firmly into the post behind her. Sakura couldn't suppress the small groan that escaped her.

What surprised her the most was that young Kakashi groaned back and pushed into her further. She wasn't sure when but her hands had somehow found themselves in his messy white hair and she began to meet his kiss fervently. Kakashi's hands began to roam which just egged her on more. Sakura felt her leg come up to wrap around Kakashi's as his hand dipped down to grip her ass.

Kakashi wasn't sure how what he intended to be a tension breaking kiss turned into a mad make-out session. They needed to break some boundaries in order to fake being a couple which was why he knew he had to at least kiss her before they left the room. If he hadn't then they wouldn't have been able to do anything even remotely convincing out on the streets - not that he would really know. But somehow he had found himself pushing his tongue into her little mouth and enjoying it. He wanted to curse the orange book in his pocket. Or, rather, his old self wanted to. His current self desired nothing more than to push Saki into the bed further. Her tongue swiped across his own and her teeth dragged lightly across his bottom lip. Kakashi gripped her harder and shifted so that he could pull her down onto the bed.

Sakura had no idea why things had progressed so quickly. How had she ended up on top of him again? Her legs were on either side of his torso, their lips connected furiously and her yukata continued to ride up. One of Kakashi's hands was on her neck - pulling her down into him - the other was playing with the edge of her yukata that sat at the top of her exposed thigh. She felt hot and a burning throb in her core. Sakura couldn't get close enough to him. She tried to push her body onto him further and felt the apex of her thighs drag across something hard beneath her. Kakashi groaned into her mouth, grabbed both of her thighs to hold her in place and ground her down onto him.

She broke their kiss and moaned into the side of his neck. _What was she doing. What were they doing._ This was Kakashi. Kakashi-sensei. She was making out with her sensei when he was 17. He was going to remember this. She could feel his erection. Her face continued to heat up. She pulled her head away from his and looked down. Young Kakashi was breathing heavily beneath her and looked just as surprised and flustered as she did. His hands were still bunched up in her yukata and his mask was down. _His mask was down._ Sakura smiled widely down at him.

"You have a mole!"

He scowled back at her. Young Kakashi didn't know what to do now. Did he continue? He wanted to continue. Did she want to continue? She wasn't moving off of him. It was the first time in a long time that he didn't know how to react or what to do. He throbbed painfully against her which, judging by the darkening tint to her cheeks, she felt.

"Um," she glanced awkwardly to the side. "We should probably go out there, then?"

Kakashi didn't trust his voice and just nodded. Neither of them moved. He didn't dare move for fear that he would jump her again. This was dangerous. She was dangerous. She was a distraction.

"Feel comfortable?" Kakashi hoped she didn't hear his voice quiver. He began to push himself up on to his elbows and tried to ignore the feel of her on his hardness. Tried to ignore the smell he knew was her arousal. Kakashi cursed his nose. He could have sworn that she looked dejected as she pulled away from him.

"Comfortable?" she looked back at him, confused, as she rose to her feet off the bed and away from him.

"Yea," he stood from the bed and straightened his clothes. He was trying to ignore what happened. It was just for the mission. All a part of his plan. "Now our first time doing that won't be out there in the public."

Sakura couldn't open her mouth to reply. She wasn't sure what to think. She finished straightening her hair and clothes and just nodded. Her stomach bubbled uncomfortably. She was stuck between turned on, disgusted and sad. Turned on because she had just made out with a very good looking Anbu Captain. A Captain who had been very into her as well - if she had felt it right. Disgusted because her perverted Sensei and current Hokage in the future was likely remembering this very occurrence right now. And sad because he was pushing her away and all she wanted right now was to be closer to him.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross Posted from FF.net
> 
> In Case of Blue Scroll the Hokage must lock himself in his office and pull his hair out as what he thought were memories of a long lost love turn out to be the memories of a mission he was about to assign his former student, Sakura Haruno.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello my lovelies!
> 
> If you are new to my story - Welcome! If you have read it and are back again - thank you! I have been editing this more thoroughly - fixing small mistakes and changing some wording here and there but it's not entirely fresh. 
> 
> Just a reminder that I posted this story years ago on ff.net but I am re-editing it as I go along to repost here. 
> 
> I had the urge to write something new but don't have a particular story-line in my head yet. I was hoping that by re-posting, editing and tweaking some parts of this story that I might be inspired to start something new. 
> 
> Feel free to show love through your comments and if you have any desires you want to see in a future story let me know :)

The festival was bursting with cute couples. Paper lanterns were strung up over top all of the town streets. Food stalls and games littered the walk ways. The town was full of laughter, giggling and the blushes of young love.

Sakura's own face was flushed. Her arm was linked with the 17 year old version of Kakashi as the pair of them meandered through the streets. Sakura was relieved that Kakashi was leading them through the crowd as she didn't think her mind could focus on anything other than what had just happened in the hotel room. What was she doing? He was going to know when she got back to her own time. The famous Copy Ninja - her Hokage - her _former Jonin Sensei_ \- the man that had known her and been there for her since she was 12. A man who had had to deal with all her pubescent mood swings, tears, and awkwardness. Her perverted former sensei.

"Why are you clenching so hard?" Kakashi's head was bent towards her ear so he could speak quietly.

Sakura felt her flush deepen and chose not to turn her head to look at him. "Ano - sorry." She forced herself to relax her hand.

Kakashi hummed next to her before asking, "Are you nervous?"

Sakura wanted to laugh at him in response but couldn't get her body to respond in that way. He was still too close but she assured herself that she would remain professional. He was just a teenage boy right now. She would deal with the consequences in the future in the, well, future. They weren't actually flirting or getting attached. They were not actually going to do anything back in the hotel room. Not even a little.

"Not nervous," she replied softly. Kakashi said nothing back as he continued to lead them through the crowded streets. He was trying to make a mental map of everything important in the town - to find all the hidden alleys and anywhere else that Shinobi could hide. They didn't know that it was Shinobi kidnapping people but it was highly likely as Asuma and Kurenai were not weak by any means. He was having a hell of a time concentrating as every time he took a step forward Saki's breast rubbed against his arm. He had never thought an elbow could feel aroused but his was on fire right now.

The young ninja didn't know what was wrong with him. He kept feeding into these desires - desires he had never had before. Sure, he had wanted to sleep with girls before but nothing he couldn't control. He was always in control. He would sleep with anonymous girls on his agenda. He never got close to girls in the village. He barely ever knew the girls he did get close to when he did end up seducing them - not that that was particularly hard for him. There was something about Saki that was drawing him in and he did not like it. He wanted to tease her and make her stomp her feet. He wanted to push his elbow into her breast even deeper. But he couldn't. He wouldn't.

He abruptly stopped at a dango stand and pulled his arm away from her. He ignored the part of him that missed her warmth. Kakashi bought them each a treat, handed it to her and continued walking slightly ahead of her with one of his hands in his pocket. He missed the look on her face as she noticed the distance between them.

Sakura caught up to him in a few quick strides and leaned into his ear as cutely as possible while stretching a full head above her regular height. "Is that how a boyfriend acts?"

Kakashi glanced sideways at her as he tried to eat a piece of dango without taking his mask completely off. "Buying the girl a sweet treat and escorting her around? ...yes?"

Sakura huffed lightly as she maintained their close proximity. "What do you think drew their attention before?" Sakura knew they couldn't speak directly about it out in the open but she was trying to make a point.

Kakashi sighed, pulled his hand out of his pocket and draped his arm around her waist. He made sure his hand rested lowly on her hip as he pulled her body closer to his. "That better?"

Sakura ignored the tingling sensation that cut across her body where ever his hand had grazed. She ignored the feeling of his leg against her hip and his warm hand on her. She turned to look at him and smiled - refusing to let him get to her.

"Probably looks more couple-like now, don't you think?" Try as she might she still wasn't able to maintain eye contact for too long.

"Hn," Kakashi chewed the last of his dango before tossing the stick in the nearest trash can. "Bit different for them, though."

"Who?" Sakura was still happily chewing on her dango. How Kakashi managed to eat so quickly without getting a stomach ache she would never understand.

"Asuma and Kurenai. Given the constant cloud of sexual tension that follows them it wouldn't have been much of a stretch. That or someone found out who they were." He replied absentmindedly. His thumb was drawing circles on her hip and it itched to sink lower. He could smell her. Flowers and a light dusting of arousal. His throat became tight.

"I guess we will just have to get better at acting." She turned her head away from him and stared out at the crowd around them.

Kakashi wanted to pinch her bottom. "Yea," he mumbled in agreement.

###### 

The pair returned to their room after wandering the festival for a few hours. They had played some games, watched some entertainment and tried to appear as a cute young couple. Sakura didn't know why but it felt like they were playing fake relationship chicken. Kakashi was a proud man in Sakura's era and didn't take well to having his mistakes pointed out. She could take a guess and assume that the younger version of the man she knew was similar, if not worse, at taking criticism. That would explain why after she had pointed out his distance, and lack of boyfriend-like behaviour, he began to take his role _very_ seriously. Kakashi seemed to be testing every boundary he could to see if she would react and blow their cover. Sakura wanted to push him off or punch him into the ground but knew she had to react like the dutiful little girlfriend. His touch was electrifying and continued to fluster her to the point that she couldn't act properly. Instead, she blushed furiously and turned into a mixture of Ino and Hinata.

Kakashi would intentionally move closer than necessary when moving through the crowd - making sure to rub up against her more than he needed. Sakura would blush and stutter but also push her body back into him so as not to lose whatever game he was playing. She kept telling herself it was just for the mission and not because she loved the way his body felt pressed up against hers. The worst was when he made a lewd comment. Sakura's instinct was to pound him into the ground but, for obvious reasons, she couldn't do that. If she had given herself more time she would have tried to swat his arm playfully and giggled it off but her face just flushed a deep crimson and she stopped in her tracks. She could see Kakashi looking at her playfully - knowing too well that he had won their little game. Shortly after that they returned to their room - to Sakura's relief.

Kakashi immediately went to the couch and pulled out his orange book. Sakura fought the urge to make a snide comment and walked into the bathroom. The massive, marble bathtub was calling her.

When she was out of sight and he could hear the sound of the bath filling, Kakashi let out a long sigh, took his mask off and kicked off his boots. There was something wrong with him. He had never enjoyed this type of mission before but he had felt a smile on his face almost the entire evening. It had taken all of his strength not to act on his desires. Her face when he had asked her what panties she was wearing had sent a shiver down his spine. Even now he could feel himself harden at the thought of her naked in the other room. Get back to your book. He was more than half way through the novel now. The scenes were continuing to get more and more interesting but he still found himself more interested in the medic.

She was a dangerous distraction. Kakashi barely knew anything about her, nor did he trust her fully. Sure, the Hokage seemed to but there was something missing - something she was keeping from everyone. He turned the page in his book and was met with a rather graphic illustration. He felt the urge to giggle but quickly squashed it. Thankfully no one else was around to see him or the flush that was spreading across his normally covered cheeks. It was weird being on a regular mission, or as regular as missions can get. He had been in Anbu for so long now that he had forgotten what it was like to be on a mission with shinobi who had personality. Being able to joke around rather than cold calculating silence. It was different when your comrades openly showed their emotions.

In Anbu you didn't get attached to those around you. Everyone that signed up basically had a death wish to begin with - especially the missions he was assigned. It was why he had left regular missions behind to begin with. They were always reaching out to him. Trying to get him to join in at their social events. He had entertained them a few times but it just solidified the fact that he was in a different world than them. Their sympathy was annoying. He was fine. He just didn't want them fawning over him all the time.

There was something about Saki that drew his attention more than any other comrade he had had since his time under Minato-sensei. She didn't annoy him like others did. She didn't seem to fawn over him or give him the same sympathy. She was always surprising him. Sure, he had been forced to spend all this time with her but he found himself enjoying it...sometimes. Maybe he could flirt his way out of the forced medical leave. Would she be fooled by that? Could he distract her with that? The image of her blushing face caused a smile to reach his lips again. She did seem easily flustered by him. It had been fun to try to get different reactions out of her that evening.

Kakashi had expected her to get fed up with him and push him away. To throw a little temper tantrum like he had seen her do over the past few days. But she tried to ignore her instincts - he could tell. She stuttered brilliantly when he did something unexpected. Blushed at all the right moments. He wasn't sure if she was acting. Maybe she was that good of an actress - he didn't know her well enough yet to tell. He wanted to believe she wasn't. His pride desperately wanted to think that it was just him causing her to blush and shy away. To flirt back. To be so inconsistent.

She had reacted perfectly earlier - when he had kissed her. He had said it was for the mission but deep down he suspected he had done it just for his own libido. It was this damn book he was reading. That had to be it. He had never acted like this before he started reading it. Every page he read pulled him in deeper and deeper into the story - tantalizing him. None of it was realistic, at least not in any shinobi's life that he had ever heard of. But he couldn't help picturing Saki in the place of the heroine. He felt his pants tighten again and looked up at the door to the bathroom.

Kakashi could see the door from where he was seated but anyone coming out of the bathroom would only be able to see his head. Should he? Saki would likely take a while in there, right? He tried to strain his hearing to see if it sounded like she would be out soon. He could hear her softly humming so he assumed that meant she was still relaxing in the massive bathtub.

He didn't want to let his urges get the better of him later. If he didn't do this now he might not be able to control himself. He could just wait until Saki was finished and go into the bathroom to do it privately but there was an urgency to the aching throb in his groin that he didn't think he could ignore. He would just have to make sure he kept his eyes on the door.

Sakura was in heaven. The bathroom was larger than her apartment. The bath larger than her bedroom. It was absolutely extravagant. There were multiple taps that spewed out all kinds of different smelling soaps and lotions. The tub was so deep that her head was barely above the water when she stood in the center. The hot water felt amazing on her body. If she closed her eyes and tuned the world out it was almost like she was back at home. Back in her own time where nothing weird was happening between her and her former sensei.

She wasn't sure how long she had spent in the tub but her waterlogged fingertips told her that it was time to go back to her current reality. Sakura clamored out of the bath and avoided looking at her naked self in the mirror while she searched the cabinets for towels. She had been so eager to get into the tub that she hadn't checked to make sure that there were towels waiting in the bathroom. Besides - it was a fancy Inn, why wouldn't they have towels in the bathroom.

They didn't have towels in the bathroom.

A small puddle was beginning to form beneath her as she stared around the room in desperation. Young Kakashi would never let her live this down. He liked to pick at anything he could in order to tease her relentlessly. It was his way of keeping her from pinpointing his own issues. But she didn't have a towel and she couldn't just stand here until she was dry. Sakura took a deep breath in and moved to the door. It was angled in such a way that he could easily see her through the mirror behind her if he met her at the crack in the door.

"Kakashi" She called out hesitantly but no reply came. She waited a moment, thinking that maybe he was asleep or left the room briefly. But Kakashi wouldn't have left without telling her, right?

She opened the door a little wider and tried to push her head out into the room. "Kakashi!"

This time she heard a grunt and the sound of quick movement. "Kakashi?"

There was a brief pause before he replied. "Yea?"

"There are no towels in here," she said sheepishly. Again, the silence dragged on. Sakura couldn't see him from her position and didn't want to risk him getting a glimpse of her naked skin. She knew he hadn't moved and didn't understand why. She opened her mouth to say something again but he spoke before she could.

"So?" he drew out the long vowel. Sakura rolled her eyes.

"So," she tried to keep the pleading out of her voice. "Can you please bring me a towel?"

Sakura heard him hum from the couch before moving to get up very slowly. She tried to watch him through the crack in the door - careful to make sure he wasn't trying to peek at her.

Kakashi walked over to a cabinet next to the bathroom door. From what he could tell Saki hadn't seen anything. He hoped. His erection wouldn't go down either. Not with the knowledge that she was naked and pressed up against the door not 4 feet from him. He had been so close. The first time he had heard her voice he thought it was just his overactive imagination. Kakashi glanced quickly at the door and saw one of her eyes peeking at him through the crack. Hopefully her view was so impaired that she wouldn't notice the tent in his jonin pants.

"What were you doing?" she asked.

He paused as his hand gripped one of the bath towels and turned his head more towards her direction. Sakura ducked her head away from the door so that her body was hidden completely.

"Reading." Kakashi stated simply. He let go of the full sized towel and began to smile. He grabbed a hand towel instead and walked closer to the door. "You still need this?"

"Just leave it on the floor."

"Then it will get dirty," he leaned into the door frame and peeked through the small crack in the door. Her face appeared behind it, eyes wide as they saw him staring back.

"Are you trying to peek at me!?"

Kakashi smirked back at her. "Do you really want a towel? I can just step back and wait for you to come out on your own?" He felt a throb in his pants again. There was something seriously wrong with him.

Sakura opened the door further, careful to keep her body hidden from his few, and stuck out her arm. "Just give it to me!"

"In the bathroom? I thought our first time should be in the bed. But whatever you say," he replied lightly, making sure to keep the towel out of her grasp.

"Kakashi!" He couldn't help but picture her entire body flush with embarrassment.

"Hmmm?"

Sakura glared at him and opened the door a little wider. His hair was ruffled and his mask was off. There was a faint flush to his features that reminded her of their encounter earlier in the day. He smiled at her and step backward while holding the towel low and out of her reach.

"I'm not coming out there to get it. Stop messing around, Kakashi," she almost growled. Her gaze drifted down to where the towel was in order to gauge how much of her body she could keep hidden if she jumped out to rip it from his fingers. It was subtle but he wasn't holding the towel all that naturally and she thought she saw his hand twitch as her gaze fell.

Kakashi should have just given her the towel and left well enough alone. He was now using the towel to hide his own problem from the girl in the doorway. The door was open wide enough now that he could see a big of her bare shoulder and leg. Just a few more inches and he would get a glimpse of a lot more. Maybe if he moved to the side he would see her through the mirror behind. He fought the urge to shake his head and mentally tried to snap out of whatever his hormones were making him do. Quickly he tossed the towel at her and turned away. Hoping to Kami that she wouldn't notice. That she hadn't noticed. That she would be quick so he could hop in the shower and take care of his little friend.

"Were you masturbating?"

Kakashi froze. He heard the sound of her hand hitting her mouth. Should he reply? He could feel the heat creep up the back of his neck. Was she curious or bothered by that? He glanced back at her and met her shocked gaze. She likely hadn't meant to actually ask him that.

He smiled cockily at her. "Yep."

She abruptly shut the door. Kakashi chuckled and sat back down on the couch. Would she come out in that teeny tiny towel?

"KAKASHI!" The door slammed open. He glanced up and saw exposed legs, a towel that barely covered and the pink face of an embarrassed young girl. Yup. There was something wrong with him and he didn't know how to fight it. He watched as Saki ran to her bag for a change of clothes, trying to keep herself covered. As she bent down Kakashi saw the curve of her ass and felt his cock throb painfully. He couldn't handle this anymore.

Sakura stood with a bundle of clothes in her hand ready to return to the bathroom when she saw Kakashi run in there and slam the door. The sound of the shower followed soon after. She walked to the door and banged on it repeatedly.

"I wasn't done in there!"

"Occupied." The young Kakashi's voice said with an edge of finality.

Sakura's hand went to the doorknob.

"I wouldn't do that, Saki." Kakashi's voice was right behind the door now. "Not unless you want to help me with my problem?"

Sakura stepped away from the door as if it were on fire. She could feel a familiar warmth spreading through her body. Was he really doing that? Was it because of her? She wanted to yell pervert but a smile fell on her lips instead before she shook her head and walked as far away from the bathroom as she could. She should be disturbed. Grossed out. Repulsed. But she liked it. She liked this. She was screwed.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross Posted from FF.net
> 
> In Case of Blue Scroll the Hokage must lock himself in his office and pull his hair out as what he thought were memories of a long lost love turn out to be the memories of a mission he was about to assign his former student, Sakura Haruno.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello my lovelies!
> 
> If you are new to my story - Welcome! If you have read it and are back again - thank you! I have been editing this more thoroughly - fixing small mistakes and changing some wording here and there but it's not entirely fresh.
> 
> Just a reminder that I posted this story years ago on ff.net but I am re-editing it as I go along to repost here.
> 
> I had the urge to write something new but don't have a particular story-line in my head yet. I was hoping that by re-posting, editing and tweaking some parts of this story that I might be inspired to start something new.
> 
> Feel free to show love through your comments and if you have any desires you want to see in a future story let me know :)

Neither of them slept that night.

After Kakashi had relieved himself in the bathroom he had hesitatingly returned to the main room. Sakura was curled up in the middle of the bed with a look on her face that said I've claimed this and you can't do anything about it.

The development between them was strange. She was awakening desires in himself that he never knew he had. He wanted to tease her, to see her mad and to watch her smile. Things he didn't remember feeling before, for anyone. He didn't trust it - these feelings - or her.

He wanted to sleep on the couch and ignore everything that had happened the past couple of days. He kept acting without thinking. Completely uncharacteristic of himself. Kakashi continued to stare at the girl in the bed - weighing the options in front of him. It would be better for him if he slept on the couch. It would irritate her if he pushed into the bed - and he would get to see her angry, flushed face again. _It would be better if he slept on the couch._ He glanced towards where he wanted to spend the night, eyes trailing over his traveling pack. Right, the mission. They were supposed to be a couple right now. He hadn't set up any traps in the hopes that they would become targets to see what was going on the easy way. His eyes trailed back to the bed. The young ninja sighed as he walked closer to his female companion.

"Nuh uh - no. No you are not." Sakura stretched out further in the bed. This was just another line they didn't need to cross. She had avoided sleeping in the same bed as her male teammates almost her entire career. There were only a few small instances where they had to and she had threatened each one of them into behaving themselves. She had never worried about her older sensei before but the person before her was not that man. His actions were all over the map today and she didn't want to tempt anything further.

She didn't want to temp herself.

This was her future teacher. Her future captain. Her future Hokage. A man who was like a father - well no, more like an estranged uncle - but he cared for her and she for him in a familial kind of way. Besides, he knew what happened here. He would remember all this. He knew before she left what happened here. She had to keep reminding herself that her former sensei, her former captain, and her current Hokage was basically watching everything she did right now. That Kakashi knew what he was sending her to do when he handed her that blue mission scroll. She tried to think back to how he was acting when she went into his office for the mission. He had not wanted to look at her and seemed very interested in anything but her while he gave her vague instructions. At the time she didn't think this was too out of the ordinary for the strange man but maybe it was. Maybe he knew that something more was happening. Maybe it was just because of what had already happened. She knew she was blushing furiously and wanted to look away from the young man before her but if she did he would think she was conceding to let him into the bed.

"You can sleep on the couch. I've claimed this." Sakura said firmly.

The young Kakashi stared down at her in a way that achingly reminded her of the Kakashi from her own time. It was the don't act like a child look. The you don't have a choice - I've decided what's happening look.

"Need I remind you of the mission," even his tone was similar. This was the first real glimpse of the man she knew from her own time. Maybe he had always been condescending when he was right.

Sakura huffed and rolled as far over to the other side of the king bed as possible. Determined not to acknowledge him for the whole night. Kakashi gingerly climbed in under the blankets on his side of the bed. She was more than 2 arms lengths away from him and he was fine with that.

The soft smell of hotel shampoo covered the pillow beneath his head. Kakashi stretched his arm out to turn the lamp off next to the bed. The room was dark and quiet. The only sounds to be heard were the soft, tense breaths of the two shinobi and the faint laughter of the drunken couples on the street.

Kakashi's life had changed in the past few days thanks to the strange girl next to him. He grew increasingly suspicious of her for it but couldn't stop some of his bodies reactions to her. His brain kept making the correct decision but his body was not listening. He would just need to get through this mission, keep her at arms length and get out of the forced leave. Then he could get back on the Anbu roster and back to his normal life. Away from all the things that just reminded him of all the people he had lost. In the end she was just another person to lose.

Sakura's mind was back on her own time. Back on that moment in the Hokage's office when Kakashi had made momentary eye contact. She hadn't understood the look in his eyes at the time. She didn't really understand it now but his eyes had seemed sad somehow. That thought caused her chest to clench uncomfortably.

Sakura didn't know why she was still here in this time and wanted desperately to get back to her own time. With her team, friends and regular life. Hopefully when she got back Kakashi wouldn't mention anything and this would just be an awkward secret they shared and never spoke of. The important thing was to not allow anything to happen further. She needed to figure out how to fix whatever was wrong with Kakashi so that she could finally go back to her own time. She knew that Asuma and Kurenai were friends with Kakashi in her own time so maybe that was the key to this. Maybe she just needed to reunite him with his friends and get him to open up to people again. It was clear he didn't connect with anyone anymore because of the fear of losing someone close to him again. The fear of another piece of his heart being torn to pieces. But how do you help someone get over that fear?

Before long the sun had risen and the town began to slowly awaken for another day of the festival. Today they were meeting Genma and Anko at a popular cafe to discuss what the pair may have uncovered in the hotel. Kakashi had been the first to get out of bed. Sakura almost forgot that she was in the past with how abruptly he got up and began his day - so similar to how he was when they were on missions in her own time. It was one of the strange characteristics of Kakashi that she never fully understood. He was typically a lazy, perpetually late man except when it came to getting up in the morning. The complete opposite of Sakura.

He didn't speak a word to her as she watched him shuffle about in his early morning routine. Sakura chose to stretch out as much as possible on the bed that she couldn't enjoy to herself the night before. Sleep had not come for her that night and her eyes ached. She didn't want to get back up and closed her eyes as she snuggled further into the pillow beneath her. Maybe if she wished hard enough she would wake up from this dream and laugh at her own imagination. She could hear the sound of Kakashi's footsteps as he came out of the bathroom. She guessed he was fully dressed and ready for the day now. In her time he would stretch himself along the couch and read one of his books until the rest of the team woke up.

In this time it seemed that the Copy-nin was impatient. Sakura cracked an eye open to stare up at Kakashi as he stood beside the bed looking down at her. His face was blank and serious.

"What?" she mumbled as she pulled the blankets tighter around herself.

"We're not on vacation," he stated simply.

"I'm aware of that," she tried to keep the sarcasm from her voice. "But we don't have to meet the others until noon."

"It's not befitting of a shinobi to be in bed all day."

She glared at him. "What difference does it make if I get ready now or later? We will have to wait around to meet them anyways."

"It didn't occur to you that we need to conduct surveillance this morning? That we need to make more appearances to draw attention? The other two will not be able to if you couldn't tell from Anko's actions." His voice held a similar lecturing tone that reminded Sakura of the man he would become.

"Ugh - you are so annoying, you know that?" she grumbled as she pulled the covers back and angrily stomped out of bed. In her anger she missed the way Kakashi's eyes glanced down her exposed legs.

###### 

Street vendors had begun to lazily set up shop as the pair left the hotel. Sakura's stomach grumbled hungrily and she wondered if her companion wanted to eat this morning. She turned to him to ask if he wanted to grab breakfast but stopped before the words left her mouth. His nose was already buried in the orange covered Icha Icha Paradise.

"Surveillance, eh!?" she said through gritted teeth. Kakashi glanced sideways at her before walking away.

The young version of the Copy-nin knew that they didn't need to start surveillance this early in the morning. He had always been an early riser and found it very difficult to sit around waiting for things to happen. It's why he spent so much time on missions and hated being forced to take a vacation. He had gotten up to do his mindless routine like he did every morning. It didn't matter that he hadn't slept at all the night before due to the smell of the companion next to him. He didn't like her smell at all. He didn't like how warmth seemed to radiate from her skin. He didn't like how he wanted to roll over and touch her. He didn't like how his eyes kept straying to her. Once he had been finished mindlessly brushing his teeth he came out with nothing else to do. He could read his new book but trapped in close quarters with Saki was hard enough without further stimulation. Kakashi had looked at her on the bed and knew that he needed to get her ready and out. In public he could hide and focus on the mission. But in the room, early in the morning her hair was tussled, her skin barely covered by her sleeping clothes, her smell was everywhere. He couldn't stay there.

But now that they were out in the open he didn't know what to do. Saki had been right when she said that they didn't have anything to do until their lunch meeting with the other shinobi. Walking around this early was not likely to lead them to any breakthroughs for the missing persons. There wasn't even enough distraction to keep him from staring at her. Kakashi didn't like that she drew his attention so much. It was far too dangerous. As he walked away down the street with his nose buried in Icha Icha he tried to keep his mind from straying. Tried to maintain control over himself.

"We might as well get something to eat if you don't have anywhere for us to be," she said sharply from behind him.

"Sure." He wanted to keep contact to a minimum - this included conversation. He heard her huff angrily and smirked beneath his mask. She was too easy to aggravate which seemed like a horrible characteristic for a shinobi. Was it an act to make him lower his guard?

"Guess I'll choose then." She picked up her pace and walked into the nearest cafe. He followed stiffly behind her trying to keep his eyes on the pages in front of him.

She grabbed a booth near the back of the cafe and promptly stuck her nose in one of the menus on the table. Kakashi followed suit. Before too long a small waitress had approached their table cheerily, accepted their orders and disappeared into the back of the cafe - leaving the two of them alone again. Kakashi was beginning to regret his decision from this morning. He should have just left her in the room and done surveillance on his own. Even if there wasn't anything to survey he could have had 4 blissful hours without the distraction sitting across from him. Kakashi's hand itched towards his copy of the orange book he had set on the table.

"Don't you dare," Sakura whispered aggressively as she grabbed the orange book and hid it beneath the table on her side of the booth. Kakashi glared at her.

Now he had nothing to distract him.

"I was just getting to a good part," Kakashi said. He thought that there was a chance he could reason with her. She had been the one to tell him to get a hobby.

"I thought we were on a mission, Kakashi-kun," Sakura said sickeningly. "What could be better than having an intimate breakfast with your girlfriend that you brought to one of the most romantic events of the year."

"Open to the page I marked and you'll understand," Kakashi mumbled as he slouched down in his seat. The waitress approached their table again with their tea before disappearing behind the curtain again. Kakashi used his heightened sense of smell to check that there was nothing in the tea before pouring himself a cup. He glanced up to see if the girl seated across from him wanted any but paused mid motion.

Saki had the book open - cheeks tinted pink and mouth slightly open. Her eyes were rapidly scanning the pages. Her cheeks continued to darken and her eyes widened slightly. Abruptly she closed the book and tossed it back at him. He caught it and couldn't help the laugh that escaped him as he watched her avoid eye contact with him.

"You didn't like it?" Kakashi asked slyly.

"Shutup," Sakura grabbed the cup of tea in front of her and continued to keep her eyes downcast.

"Aw that's cute!" the voice of the small waitress startled them both. "I remember when my boyfriend and I first discovered that series. We spent weeks acting out all the scenes together." She placed their plates of food down in front of them. "I know it can seem embarrassing at first, honey, but you should make sure you please your man and give him what he wants. Particularly the scene in chapter 8. That's my boyfriends favourite and seems to be popular with most of the guys that come through here."

Sakura's face resembled a tomato.

"Chapter 8 is the part she just read," Kakashi tapped the spine of the book on the table. Sakura could tell there was a smirk hidden beneath his mask as he watched her reaction.

"I do believe I just embarrassed her further," the small waitress said with a laugh. "But don't fret," she slapped Kakashi on the shoulder offhandedly, "the shyest girls are oftentimes the best in the bedroom."

"I can only hope- ouch!" Kakashi was promptly kicked in the shin as the waitress walked away laughing - leaving the two to awkwardly begin their meals. "We have to play our parts, Saki."

Sakura glared at him but remained silent. She began to aggressively devour her meal not even bothering to try to catch a glimpse of the elusive copy-nin's face. Kakashi followed suit.

Once their meal was over the pair wandered the town and began to make mental maps of all the important areas. Your surroundings could make or break a mission so it was important to make sure you could get around easily. So far they had seen nothing overly suspicious and they still had hours before they were to meet with their companions.

"Are there any must see or must do tourist attractions for couples here that might help us figure this whole thing out?" Sakura had asked Kakashi quietly while the pair strolled through a secluded park.

"We can ask the hotel staff when we go back."

That was the most the pair had spoken since breakfast. Sakura was still embarrassed about what had happened earlier. The passage that she had read from the novel had painted a very graphic picture in her head that she was having a hard time forgetting. That and the waitress's suggestion that she try it later with her fake boyfriend, Kakashi, had sent her mind reeling.To picture them doing that - to think that he would enjoy that - did guys enjoy that? She glanced sideways at Kakashi. His nose was buried in his book again. It was eerie to see him there, so like the man she knew in her time but so different. It felt like she could just talk to him about old times but knew she couldn't. The only difference was he didn't walk as lazily as her sensei did. Obviously, this Kakashi was still on high alert during their mission or at least hadn't mastered the ability to look lazy while being alert.

Sakura was getting fed up with the silence.

"A good boyfriend wouldn't be paying more attention to an erotic novel rather than his girlfriend!" she hissed.

Without missing a beat Kakashi replied, "Maybe if the good boyfriends girlfriend kept him sexually interested he wouldn't need an erotic novel."

"That's it!" Sakura launched herself at the white-haired ninja in an attempt to wrestle the book out of his hands. Kakashi was not prepared for such a reaction but his quick reflexes still managed to pull the book out of her reach. Unfortunately this caused the young girl to climb closer and trip over the taller man's feet forcing the pair of them to tumble towards the ground. Sakura attempted to grab the book from him again but Kakashi grabbed her around the waist with his one arm while keeping his other as far away from her as possible.

Sakura tried to wiggle free from his grasp and stretch toward his outstretched arm. Her cheek came into contact with something warm and she paused to glance at what it was. Sakura felt heat rise to her cheeks as she realized their position. Kakashi was lying on the ground with his one arm wrapped around her waist and his other arm, with the copy of the orange novel, stretched as far away from her as possible. Sakura was straddling him, held closer by the arm around her, chest pressed snugly against his, faces centimetres apart. Kakashi was breathing heavily beneath her. Sakura couldn't quite read the look that was in his visible eye. He looked like a mixture of startled, amused, flustered and something else she couldn't quite put her finger on. She tried to move again in the hopes that she could reach the book in his hand and tear it to pieces.

"Don't," Kakashi's strained voice brought her eyes back down to his face. She felt his arm tighten around her waist and she looked at him in confusion.

"Stop reading it then," she replied as she placed her arms on the ground next to his head and attempted to push backwards.

"Ugh," Kakashi closed his eyes and let out a soft groan. Sakura froze, concern washing away any anger she had before.

"What's wrong? Did you hit your head in the - woah - Hey!" Kakashi had abruptly stood up causing Sakura to fall unceremoniously on the ground. He turned away from her and began walking down the path again.

Kakashi failed to hear the series of expletives she shouted at him as he walked away quickly. All he could think was that he needed to put distance between them. The stupid girl had been rubbing all over him. How could she be so oblivious. To think that she thought he was hurt. He ached in his pants. _He needed to think of something else - bugs, blood, Gai in a thong_ \- anything to get his problem to go away.

"Hey! Where are you going?" Sakura yelled from behind him. Kakashi briefly glanced her way but didn't slow down. _The Third Naked, Gai and the Third naked together._ Finally he seemed to be getting a handle on his problem but he still didn't want to be near her. Kakashi began to walk off the path towards a clearing in the distance. Once there he found the nearest tree and took a seat below it. He didn't dare start reading his new hobby for fear that it would stir up what he was desperately trying to get down. He watched as his companion approached angrily from the path he had carved through the clearing.

"What are you doing?" she stomped over to him.

"Taking a breather," he barely looked at her as his eyes glanced up to the sky. Why was this happening to him.

"Is your head hurt or something?" she bent down towards him - giving him a small glimpse down her shirt. He averted his gaze to the ground again.

"No."

She threw herself on the ground in front of him and crossed her legs beneath her. "What is it then?"

Kakashi waited to reply as he looked at the scenery around them. "We have time to kill and were getting nothing done walking around."

Sakura leaned back into the grass, "I could have been asleep this whole time."

Sakura sighed and looked over at the copy-nin beneath the tree. He was acting strangely today. Yesterday he had been, well, all over her in the hotel room. Today he wanted nothing to do with her - not that she wanted him to be into her. Sakura most definitely did not want that. Maybe the way he was acting now is how he would be the rest of her time here and why he was acting similarly when he sent her on this stupid mission in the future. She kept forgetting about her own mission - but she truly did not know what she was supposed to do.

"I guess since we are here, in relative seclusion, it wouldn't be a bad idea to have a short therapy session before going to meet Anko and Genma."

Kakashi stared at her blankly.

"Don't give me that look. This is my job." She pulled herself up from the ground and glared back at him. "Tell me about the last time you spent time with friends."

Kakashi let out a sigh of irritation.This again. "I don't recall - okay? Months ago or years ago. It all blurs together. Basically not since my _fist went through Rin's chest_ ," his voice was dripping with irritation and venom.

Sakura didn't know how to respond. She had taken a guess when the Third was giving her the brief history of Kakashi's tragedies but to hear it come from his own mouth was something else entirely.

"No response?" he said haughtily.

"It's hard to find something to say to that, Kakashi," she replied softly. "Unfortunately I have never experienced loss like that."

"Have you experienced any loss?" he asked bitterly.

"Some," she answered as her mind drifted to the war. She had seen a lot of death. Had witnessed her friends lose some of the closest people to them. She herself had come out with her entire team - back together again - like one big happy family...or so she had hoped. "I have seen a lot of death and watched a lot of close friends deal with the loss of their team mates. Sacrifices that were made to keep them alive. But I have been fortunate never to have someone that I love die. Or to watch someone I love die."

"I didn't love her," Kakashi said with disgust - taking Sakura by surprise.

"What do you mean? Of course you loved your teammate."

"Not the way she wanted. Never the way she wanted."

Sakura stayed silent as the teenage version of her former sensei bent his head to his knees and avoided eye contact with her. She really wasn't the best equipped for this. Her mentor would have said something helpful or been blunt in a way that pushed you forward but Sakura didn't know how to do that. Every time she had tried to do that with Sasuke he had pushed her away and this Kakashi was eerily similar to the angry avenger she grew up with. Even when he had come back he wanted nothing to do with her.

"Have you ever been in love?" Kakashi's muffled voice asked her. Sakura was glad he wasn't looking at her because she could feel the heat rising to her cheeks.

"I thought I had been," she replied truthfully. Kakashi pulled up from his slouch to stare at her. His face was blank.

"Thought?"

"I think it was just a crush now," she said thoughtfully. "Eventually as I grew up I realized I didn't know him and no matter how much I thought we connected we never truly did. No matter how much I wanted to fix him - it never helped. I think I was misinterpreting caring deeply for someone like a brother for romantic love - maybe. I don't really know." Even now she couldn't talk about it clearly. How had it come to her talking about her own horrible love life with the younger version of the man who would save her from Sasuke so many times in the future.

"What happened to him?"

Sakura laughed at the strangeness of the situation and looked away from the man before her. "He tried to kill me but a good friend saved me. He was seeking revenge for the death of his family and went a bit crazy, I think. He calmed down eventually and came back but he wasn't the same. Or maybe he was and I just didn't know him." Great, she was rambling.

"Sounds like a dick."

Sakura snorted and looked back at the young Copy-nin. She could see the hint of a smile beneath his mask.

"Have you ever been in love?" she asked. She had never had these types of conversations with her Sensei. It was weird to find out all of these things from his younger self - someone who she was not nearly as close with. Now that she thought about it she knew basically nothing of her former Sensei and current Hokage. She knew that all the people he had ever cared for had died but nothing else. Everything she knew about him - in terms of his past - she had discovered in this time and not directly from the man she had called a teacher.

"No."

The pair lapsed into silence. Sakura wasn't sure how to proceed. Should she ask him about past relationships? She really didn't have any better ideas. She didn't want to ask specifics about his relationships with the people that died. Not yet. He didn't seem ready to talk about those things judging by his reaction earlier.

"Have you had any relationships?" At this point she just wanted to keep communication flowing. She remembered seeing that in one of her books.

"Define relationship," Kakashi replied slowly.

"Uh - well," Sakura hated herself for stumbling. "Girlfriends or flings...or boyfriends?"

"Girls," his hand ruffled through his hair as he stared at her. "Flings, I guess... is what you'd call it."

Sakura was getting more and more awkward. She didn't even know why she was asking this. On some level knowing that he didn't get in serious relationships would help with his therapy but she basically knew that about Kakashi already. Her heart was beating in her chest and she tried desperately to ignore the part of her that was excited about the turn in the conversation.

"How frequently?" Sakura didn't know why she was doing this.

Kakashi didn't reply right away. His one visible eye scrutinized her. Sakura wished she knew what he was feeling. She didn't know these details about the older version back in her own time. He seemed to be pondering his answer which only caused her curiosity to increase.

"Depends on where the missions are," he replied.

"So never in Konoha?" Some sick part of her wanted to know if there were any other girls in the city that he was involved with. Her rational self was stuck inside screaming at her to change the subject and stop this conversation. That it wasn't going to help. That her curiosity and interest in the young man in front of her was unnatural.

"I try not to. Why?" His gaze was dark and she had to fight not to look away.

"No reason. Just curious." Great. Very Professional.

"Hn." Kakashi stretched his legs out in front of him. The tips of his toes mere inches from Sakura's crossed legs beneath her. "How about you?"

"How about I, what?" Her eyes were glued to the bottom of his boots.

"Any relationships? Girlfriends?" He said with a smirk. "Boyfriends? Flings?"

"Oh," Sakura felt her cheeks pinken. "Um, one boyfriend."

"Did it last long?" He was looking at her lazily now. Sakura really wished she hadn't pushed the conversation this direction.

"Not really." Sakura also didn't understand why she kept answering him either. She couldn't help but feel like they were really connecting right now and didn't want to ruin it. "He wasn't getting what he wanted so he lost interest."

Kakashi snorted before saying, "So you really are a prude."

Sakura punched his leg half halfheartedly. "I am not. I just take my work very seriously and well, there was no time. So, yea. Also - bugging for stuff all the time... why am I even telling you this." She buried her face in her hand. This had become so awkward. She wished she could just disappear and go somewhere else. She didn't want to be reminded of Kenta. He had been cute at first. And patient. Sakura had dated him after the war but things never seemed to really take off. She had never been completely interested in him. They had done some things - kissing and fooling around - but when it came to the full deed she always stopped it. It never felt right. Eventually he got mad about it and left.

After a long period of silence Kakashi cleared his throat and stood up. "We should probably go meet them now."

###### 

Genma and Anko were already in the restaurant when Kakashi and Sakura arrived. Anko did not look pleased about the fact that Genma's arm was resting so casually against her shoulders.

The restaurant they chose was loud and busy. Sakura guessed that they picked one of the most popular places in town in the hopes that all the noise would conceal their conversation. Either way they would all need to act like loving couples. As Sakura and Kakashi approached the table Sakura had to fight back the need to jump as Kakashi's hand rested on her lower back - directing her to her seat. She was still incredibly awkward from their conversation earlier. Kakashi had been quiet - no different than usual - but refrained from reading his book on the way here.

"Hey guys!" Genma said as the pair sat down across from him in the booth. Sakura sat down first and had to sidle further into the booth. She tried to stop herself from glaring as it seemed like Genma had specifically chosen the smallest possible table for them to sit at. Anko didn't look too impressed with his proximity either. Kakashi slid into the seat next to her - leg pressed up against her own. She tried to ignore it. "Did you have a nice night last night?"

Sakura was about to reply when she felt an arm slide over her shoulders and pull her closer. She glanced up at Kakashi but as she was seated on his left side all she could see was his masked face and closed eye.

"Come on you two! You have to give me something," Genma implored.

"We had a nice night," Kakashi said simply. His hand squeezed her shoulder - telling her to act her part.

Sakura turned to Genma and smiled brightly. "We walked the festival for a bit last night! We played some games and got some dango. The town is so romantic, don't you think?" Sakura watched as Anko rolled her eyes. She tried to prevent her features from twitching in irritation. Apparently it was going to be her and Genma carrying the conversation.

Kakashi tuned out the small talk between Sakura and Genma. They were just talking about the festival and its pleasantries for the time being. His eyes and ears were searching the crowd to see if they were being watched - as subtly as possible. There was no one particularly suspicious around them but he could see people glance their way every now and then. It could have just been because they were noticeable people with interesting hair. Whatever the reason it meant that they had to keep acting. They would be able to hide their conversation with code but he would have to keep playing the boyfriend.

He really did like the way Saki smelt. He liked her. He had realized this while she was talking about herself in the field. She was getting too close to him and it was becoming very hard for him to resist it. Kakashi could feel his body start to stiffen as he came to terms with this more and more. He willed his body to relax and lent into her more. Maybe he should just enjoy this while it lasted and push her away once they got back to the village. It wouldn't be hard to hide behind the mission. One of his fingers began playing with her hair - his other hand was on the table flexing around a glass of water. If he turned his head he could smell her hair. It smelt like hotel shampoo and hair dye. So that wasn't her natural hair colour?

Kakashi glanced across the table and saw Anko staring at him strangely. Genma was talking about the inn he and Anko were staying at. His trained ears picked out all the pertinent mission information that he needed - they had stumbled into the wrong room, aka snooped through Asuma and Kurenai's room. From the sounds of things they hadn't found much beyond some receipts for places the pair had gone together as a couple. They would likely need to go to the same places. He hoped that Saki was making note of all these details too. Kakashi turned his head to look down at her face briefly - to make sure she was paying attention. Her cheeks were flushed and she was biting her lip. Was he making her nervous?

Kakashi pressed his leg into her further and he saw Saki's mouth open briefly before she chanced a glance up at him. When their eyes connected she half smiled and blushed further before looking away.

"Kami - you guys have got that act down," Genma whispered across the table. Kakashi looked at him derisively. Genma smiled at him from across the table and pulled Anko closer. Anko looked like she was going to rip his hand off but didn't.

Food arrived at the table that Kakashi didn't remember ordering. He removed his hand from around Saki's shoulders but rather than using it to eat he placed it on her thigh. He knew he didn't need to go that far but he wanted to. He wanted to know what it felt like.

Sakura had been in the middle of placing a dumpling in her mouth when Kakashi's hand had gripped her thigh. She let out a small squeak and dropped the dumping in her lap. Her face turned to Kakashi's to figure out what he was doing. He was staring down at her - mirth visible in his right eye.

"Clumsy, ne?" He said lowly. Sakura didn't know how to respond. She felt his hand glide across her thigh and clutched her chopsticks tightly in her hand. "It didn't hit the floor so I think it's still good. Unless you have surprisingly dirty legs?" He was practically whispering in her ear.

Sakura looked toward the hand he had offered up. His other hand was still on her thigh. Kakashi's body was turned slightly toward her - leg pressing her further into the corner of the booth. He was holding the dumpling she dropped a few inches from her face and watching her intently. Did he want to feed it to her?! She glanced up at his face again but his eye was glued to her mouth. Sakura didn't know what to do or say. Was this an act? Her chest was fluttering and she felt her lip tug into a half smile. Normally she would have shoved it away from her face by now but something was stopping her.

Kakashi place the dumpling at the edge of her lip experimentally and he watched as her lips opened to accept the piece of food. He was in trouble. But he could say it was the mission. Maybe get out all the urges he had and be done with it. Kakashi held his breath as the last of the dumpling disappeared into her mouth and his fingers made contact with her lips. He knew he lingered too long. _She_ knew he lingered too long. He could see it in her eyes. She was unsure of what he was doing but that would just make it easier for him.

"You guys are disgusting," Anko said from across the table - startling the pair of young shinobi. Sakura's face was a deep shade of pink, heart hammering in her chest as she chewed the dumpling in her mouth. Did that really just happen?

Kakashi avoided eye contact with everyone at the table. Genma had given him an incredulous look while smiling broadly. Half of Konoha would likely know about this by the time they go back. Kakashi focused on the food in front of him. He was happy that he wore a mask so none of the table could see the blush that was likely on his own face. Saki and Genma began talking about activities that the four of them could do which distracted enough of the people around him that he could easily sneak his food behind his mask. He registered that they were making a list of all the places they should go - a list of everywhere that Asuma and Kurenai had been. They would need to gather more information at these places in the hopes of figuring out what might have happened to the pair.

The rest of lunch was normal. Kakashi felt himself relax more and more with the presence of the girl next to him. After they had all finished eating, Genma and Anko took the lead towards one of the many places they had talked about during lunch. Saki walked closely by his side - playing her part as his dutiful girlfriend - but he didn't miss the tint to her cheeks or the way she chewed on her lip nervously. There were hundreds of other couples wandering the streets - barely sparing a glance at the pair of them. None-the-less Kakashi knew that someone was watching them. He had felt it the moment they left the cafe.

From the looks of Genma and Anko they had no idea which was so typical of them both. Anko was far too caught up in where Genma's hands were and Genma was far too caught up in trying to get his hands in more places. This wasn't a game and if he could have reprimanded them for their actions right then and there he would.

Kakashi felt a small hand and wrap around his arm. His hand had been in his pocket as he lazily walked down the street. Kakashi turned his head to see Saki glancing at him - eyes calculating. Kakashi was comforted to know that at least one of his companions on this mission still had their head in the game. He pulled his hand out of his pocket and grasped the small hand in his own. His eye crinkled up in a smile as he continued to lead his companion through the crowd. Kakashi glanced up towards the other two and let out a sigh. Anko had just ripped Genma's hand from her posterior and walked away angrily.

"Prude," Genma shouted after her - drawing the attention of a few of the passing couples.

"Tch," The female next to him muttered. "No tact."

"Genma," Kakashi called. Genma turned to him - eyes trailing to the hands held together between Kakashi and Sakura. Kakashi placed a hand on Genma's shoulder in an attempt to look comforting. However, his hand gripped Genma's shoulder painfully which briefly reflected in the mans eyes. Kakashi leaned in slightly and said lowly, "Get your shit together or I'll send you back."

Genma glanced at the man angrily but didn't say anything. Everyone knew how Kakashi was as a captain. He didn't take risks and expected you to follow orders explicitly.

"How about you buy her something nice to apologize, Genma-san?" Sakura said beside the two men. She had been surprised at how seriously Kakashi reacted. He had never been that mean to them during missions in their genin days. But this was not the man she knew and she had to keep reminding herself of that. The hand connected to his felt sweaty and she hoped he didn't notice. "We will go find Anko and try to smooth things over for now."

Genma nodded and left the pair in search of something that would appear like an apology. Sakura and Kakashi found Anko quickly. She had found a peaceful pond to sit at - or at least it had been peaceful until she started ripping up the grass along the shore line. Sakura knew they had to be careful still - she could still feel that someone was watching her but couldn't pinpoint where the sensation was coming from. It was just a hint of a chakra signature every now and then but nothing large enough to give away who or where the person was.

"Anko," Kakashi's voice was serious and cold. You could hear in his tone that he wanted to tell her she was being childish. That he wanted her to smarten up.

Anko glared back at him briefly before looking down at the ground. "I know."

Sakura separated from Kakashi and sat down next to the purple haired girl. To think that there was ever a time when Anko was a sensitive teenage girl. No one would believe it if she told them. "Hey, I know its weird," Sakura whispered. "Believe me. But its just fake."

"Ya right." Anko said bitterly. "You're loving this."

Sakura knew she was blushing but ignored it. "There's nothing wrong with liking it." She really hoped that Kakashi didn't hear her but knew that he had. He had amazing hearing. He always heard what they were whispering as genin. Kakashi did hear her, of course, a cocky smirk beneath his mask.

Anko looked at Sakura's face briefly - expressionless. Sakura smiled back at her. Anko looked back at Kakashi and was met with a cold stare. He wanted nothing more than to tell her it was a mission and she had to do it. It didn't matter what her precious sensibilities thought. But Saki seemed to be getting through to her better.

"Uh, Anko?" Genma said. He was clutching a small box awkwardly. Sakura and Kakashi removed themselves and began to walk toward their destination again in silence. It wasn't long after that Genma and Anko caught up. Sakura chanced a glance at Anko and saw a soft smile on her lips as well as a fanged necklace around her neck. Sakura quickly looked away and tried her hardest to refrain from laughing. She had seen that necklace on the older woman in her own time. She wore it every day.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross Posted from FF.net
> 
> In Case of Blue Scroll the Hokage must lock himself in his office and pull his hair out as what he thought were memories of a long lost love turn out to be the memories of a mission he was about to assign his former student, Sakura Haruno.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello my lovelies!
> 
> I am trying to get this whole thing posted before the end of the day! And then maybe I will write something new!
> 
> If you joined us before and read the entire work from ff.net thank you for coming back! If you are new to this lovely little thing I wrote then welcome and I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Feel free to leave comments as, you know, my vanity loves them. 
> 
> love!

Two days passed as the four shinobi attempted to follow in the footsteps of Asuma and Kurenai. This ranged from eating at specific restaurants to watching romantic plays to exploring a hedge maze that also contained a romantic scavenger hunt.

The scavenger hunt had proven the source of a lot of embarrassment for Sakura. Most of the items on the list involved getting up close and personal to the white haired copy-ninja. However, they had yet to share any kisses or anything more intimate than some public cuddling. Sakura had mixed feelings about this fact. She had gotten quite used to Kakashi's touch. His arm around her shoulders no longer felt intrusive. But his hands never strayed too far from her shoulders or hands. He didn't try to touch her legs again. Once back in the hotel room he would read his novel before going to bed. They hadn't really talked much since that day in the park either.

They were currently lounging in the hotel room before going to a bathhouse for couples. Just the thought of their destination had Sakura's stomach doing flips and loops. Kakashi was lounging on one of the couches but his orange novel was resting on the coffee table out of arms reach. Sakura suspected this was because of where they were going and felt her chest flutter again. She tried to prevent her face from blushing as she rushed into the bathroom. They were to leave shortly and she needed to calm herself down.

The couples bath was famous in town and Sakura was surprised to know that Asuma and Kurenai had gone there. But, she supposed, as they continually found nothing to point them towards the kidnapping culprits they would have had to exhaust all possible options.

From what Sakura had read in the pamphlet each couple would be getting their own private bathing area. There were servants to cater food and drinks to the area. It wasn't really a proper bath. No one was trying to get clean there.

A soft knock pulled her out of her reverie.

"Time to go," Kakashi's muffled voice said through the door. Sakura took a deep breath, opened the bathroom door and followed Kakashi out of the hotel.

Much to Sakura's dismay, they arrived at the bathhouse within a few minutes. It was an upscale establishment that was relatively close to their hotel. Kakashi had told Genma and Anko not to bother going to the bathhouse as he knew they wouldn't be able to deal with the situation. He wasn't sure he could deal with the situation. It was all too clear that Anko wouldn't be able to maintain cover in such a compromising position - but Kakashi was worried he would get carried away. Just the thought of Saki in the bath in the room next to him had caused a raging hard on to press against his pants. He had had to refrain from reading his book as it was stirring him up even more.

Kakashi had to maintain some semblance of control. He could get away with touching Saki here and there during the mission but nothing more. He had managed to maintain his emotional distance from her while they worked through the mission with Genma and Anko but they had also rarely been alone together. Hopefully the bath would be uneventful. Hopefully no one was watching them. Still, he couldn't help the bubble of excitement and nervousness at the prospect of seeing Saki naked.

They watched as satisfied couples left the bathhouse - both not wanting to take the first steps in. Kakashi looked over at his companion who was staring resolutely at the ground - a deep blush staining her cheeks. The image didn't help with his predicament. The last thing he wanted was for that to be active when they got into the bath together. He sighed in frustration, took her hand and led them into the bathhouse. Behind the counter were two women clad in white yukata. They smiled pleasantly at the pair as Kakashi requested a bath. The shorter of the two ushered them down a hallway and showed them to their private bathing area. Sakura prayed that there was at least a private changing area.

There wasn't.

Their hostess explained how they could order refreshments by writing their order numbers down and sliding it through the mail slot in the door. She pointed towards the towels and the exotic array of soaps and oils. Soon she had left - sliding the door closed behind her - leaving the two shinobi in silence.

Sakura was trying not to be awkward as she looked around the room in front of her. She tried to maintain the facade of curiosity and not let her nervousness show. She made sure not to look at Kakashi.

The bath they were assigned was cute. There was a tall fence surrounding their outdoor bathing area. The steam rose from the water. There were delicate bamboo decorations as well as the rocks you would typically see at any high end bathhouse. Sakura didn't want to do this. She had never been this nervous. Is this one of the things that Kakashi was remembering when he sent her back here?

The presence of a warm body behind her caused her to jump slightly. Kakashi's arms snaked around her torso and she felt her heart threatening to beat through her rib cage. She opened her mouth to say something but was stopped as Kakashi leant into her ear.

"We are being watched," he whispered so quietly that Sakura wasn't sure that she had heard him. Kakashi masked his message by kissing her softly on the neck causing a gasp to escape Sakura's lips. She strained her senses to see if they were being watched and felt the similar blip of chakra that she had felt a few days earlier. Her eyes scanned their surroundings while she tried to maintain a face that said she was just interested in the room. She couldn't figure out where someone could be watching from.

Kakashi abruptly pulled away from her and walked to the bathhouse menu.

"Did you want to order something?" he asked as he opened the menu. Sakura nodded mutely and approached him. In order to look at the menu she would need to get a lot closer to Kakashi. She could tell they were still being watched so she placed her hand on his arm as she got a better look. Sakura briefly registered that Kakashi had a nice smell before pointing at a dessert on the menu. Kakashi nodded and wrote a couple things down on the piece of paper before sliding it through the mail slot in the door.

Kakashi turned back towards Saki - watching her nervousness as she swiftly turned away from him and approached the bath. He wasn't too fond of what was happening either. Try as he may he couldn't figure out where their watcher was or how they were watching them. They would really need to play this part well. He was certain that it was the culprit they were looking for - there was a maliciousness that had leaked through when he had first noticed the presence in the bathhouse.

Sakura was now facing away from him idly dipping her toes in the water. Kakashi liked the way she looked. He would be lying if he said he wasn't interested in how this situation would play out. He was definitely interested in seeing her without her clothes. In what her naked skin would look like in the water. He bit the inside of his cheek in the hopes of reigning in his hormones. At least he wouldn't have to act like he was physically attracted to her.

Kakashi approached her from behind. He knew she was aware of his proximity as there was a stiffness to her shoulders she was trying to hide. Hopefully she was able to maintain her cover. The presence was still watching.

"Let's get in and enjoy the steamy water, ne?" Kakashi said as he closed the distance between them. Sakura shifted her gaze from the outdoor bath to Kakashi's face. She knew she was blushing but that was natural for any girl in this situation. Was she supposed to strip in front of him or could she get away with asking him not to look?

Kakashi could tell that he would have to take the lead. Saki was freezing up. Her skin was flushed down her neck past the collar of her yukata. Kakashi wasn't sure how he was supposed to comfort her in this situation. If it were an anbu mission his partner would have already gone through these motions. But Saki wasn't like the kunoichi he was usually sent on missions with - not that he was typically sent on these types of missions. Kakashi reached up and pulled down his mask. She had already seen his face before anyways so at least this part wasn't a big deal. Despite that fact she still let out a soft sound of surprise as her eyes began drinking in his features. He felt his mouth quirk in a wry smile at the look on her face.

He moved in closer again, sliding one of his hands around her waist. To her credit she didn't pull back or push him away. She just continued to stare at him. He hoped that his face spoke the words he was unable to in this moment as he pulled at the edges of her yukata. Hoped that she would just play the game until the presence left. Hoped that the presence actually left.

As Kakashi's hands pulled at the lavender obi that held her yukata together, Sakura fought the urge to close her eyes. To think that she was doing this with him. Her former sensei. Even if he didn't know it now. He would know in the future. She couldn't imagine what Kakashi thought of her when he had opened the blue scroll to begin with. To willingly, or at least knowingly, participate in something like this with Kakashi before he _was_ Kakashi - her stomach flipped. Sakura took in a shaky breath as she felt the obi fall away from her waist. There really was no going back after this. Even if he wasn't her former teacher, a friend, a captain or her Hokage yet, he was going to be all of those things eventually.

Kakashi was watching her face intently as the obi fell to the ground. He could tell her mind was furiously thinking about something but what he did not know. He supposed that he should take off some of his own clothing but watching her face as he loosened up the yukata was far too entertaining...and arousing. He was worried that he wouldn't be able to hide this fact soon. He pushed the edges of the yukata down her shoulders and heard her shaky intake of breath. Her eyes had cast downwards to focus on his mouth as the material fell away to pool at her feet. He couldn't help it as his hands idly slid down her shoulders and sides. He knew he was blushing now as he realized that she had decided not to wear a bra with the outfit. He couldn't stop his eyes from roaming the bare breasts before him and stopped her arms from moving before she covered herself.

Sakura trembled under Kakashi's scrutiny. She wanted to cover herself but he was holding her arms in place. This was embarrassing and weird. Her heart was hammering in her chest and her body felt hot under his stare. She hadn't worn a bra because she didn't want to have to take off a lot of clothing. The panties she wore were a simple black cotton. Kakashi was staring intently at her chest and her arm twitched but he gripped it tighter.

"Kakashi," she said quietly. "It's embarrassing." She wanted to say so much more but could still feel the presence watching them. Watching her bare chest and nearly naked body exposed to the man before her. One of Kakashi's hands slid up and cupped her breast and Sakura was mortified. She opened her mouth to say something - anything - but was interrupted.

"Beautiful," Kakashi said softly, eyes still cast downward at her breasts. The hand cupping her squeezed softly. "You're beautiful."

Sakura didn't know how to respond. Kakashi let go and backed away from her. His hands reached down to the edge of his own shirt to pull it above his head. He had kicked off his boots earlier and was now only wearing his loose fitted jonin pants. Sakura idly wondered where all of his concealed weapons were or if he had bothered with them for tonight. His frame was lean and littered with scars. The injury she had healed on his chest being the largest. It was only scar tissue now - having fully healed a day after the event. His hands moved to his pants.

This was it, Sakura thought to herself. This is where it all changes. As Kakashi began to pull his pants down he turned from her view. She saw the slight curvature of his butt before she averted her gaze. Small splashes alerted her to the fact that he was now in the water. Sakura didn't know whether she should be happy that she didn't see all of him or upset that he was now watching her - waiting for her to take off the last vestiges of her clothing and join him in the bath. Sakura gave him her best unimpressed look.

Kakashi shrugged at her in response before motioning for her to join him in the water. He had begun to develop quite a problem and didn't want to terrify her. The way she had been staring at him had caused a stirring in his groin. The way her breast had fit perfectly in his hand. He wanted to hold her, to kiss her and do other things to her. He watched her from his position in the hot water and wondered if she would let him. Would she enjoy it if she did or would it only be because of the mission?

Sakura glared at him stubbornly as she wrapped an arm around her chest. There was no getting around it now. The presence was still watching. It didn't matter that he was her future sensei. Right now he was just her mission partner. Her _very_ attractive mission partner. Sakura wanted to seem like a seductress but could tell from her quick and awkward movements as she pulled off her panties that she was far from it. Her skin felt hot from Kakashi's leers as she nearly ran into the hot bath. Steam rose up around them from the water. She was still having trouble meeting his eyes.

Kakashi had sunk down onto a rock near the back of the bath.

"Saki come sit with me," he called to her.

Sakura nodded at him as she began to nervously approach. She had to keep reminding herself that this wasn't how a woman in love would act with the man she was sharing a hotel room with. Once she was within arms length of Kakashi he placed his hand on her naked hip and pulled her closer to him. He was seated - his head at the same level as her chest. He looked up at her and smiled comfortingly. Sakura tried to smile back. He pulled her into his lap. They both gasped as his hardness bumped against the curvature of her inner thigh.

"Yea... sorry about that," Kakashi whispered in her ear. He was tense and awkward. Sakura felt something stir deep within herself. Something she had never really felt before. "We are still being watched," he whispered as he placed a kiss on her neck.

Sakura nodded again - too caught up in the feelings rising in her body. This felt good. She moved to stare at his face more - causing her body to shift on him. She felt Kakashi tense beneath her as he let out a little groan. She felt him throb underneath her and her body began to ache. His eyes were hooded as he looked at her.

"Why are you... you know," she whispered. Kakashi's cheeks flushed as he looked away. Butterflies flew haphazardly through Sakura's chest. She didn't want to let him look away. She moved again - this time shifting her legs to either side of his lap while facing him and settled down again.

Kakashi groaned again and pushed his head into her neck. "Because you turn me on, okay?" He couldn't help it as he pushed his body against hers more.

Sakura gasped as he pushed by her throbbing bundle of nerves. This was far too intimate. She shouldn't be doing this. They shouldn't be doing this. _Why were they doing this?_ She looked in Kakashi's glazed over eyes and licked her lips. Kakashi grunted and began to slide one of his hands down her side before dipping behind her to cup her ass. Sakura moaned as he pulled them closer together.

He was breathing heavily as he rested his head in her chest. Sakura brought her hands up to his hair. Her body was aching for the man below her. She had never felt this before. She had felt aroused with Kenta but not to this extent. Everywhere Kakashi touched felt like it was on fire. She knew that all they had to do was shift and he would be pressing against the entrance to her core. With a little bit of pressure he would be inside of her. Sakura fought the urge to rub against him further as she throbbed with arousal. Kakashi had begun to nip at her chest causing her to sigh in pleasure.

"Why are you doing this to me," he mumbled into her skin.

"Me?" she whispered back. "Why are you doing this to me? Making me feel this.." She whimpered as his tongue latched onto one of her nipples.

"What am I making you feel?" he asked as he let her nipple go with a pop. Trailing kisses between her breasts - his grip pulling her down against him. Sakura moaned as she felt him press harder against her.

Sakura's hands threaded through his hair as he began nipping at her skin. "What. Am. I. Making. You. Feel?" He punctuated each work with a nip on her breasts. 

Sakura sighed huskily and looked down at him - was he asking this seriously? She couldn't tell if this was mission talk or just him. Did he actually want her? He stared back at her expectantly. Sakura didn't know what to say.

He was doing things to her that she didn't understand. She was feeling things for him that she had never felt before. _Lust._ Her mind flashed to the image of Kakashi as Hokage. Of Kakashi saving her from Sasuke. Of Kakashi telling them nothing about himself on their genin introduction day. Of Kakashi carrying Naruto out of the forest after Pein's attack. Of Kakashi's eyes as he bade her good fortune on her latest mission.

"Kakashi, I -" Sakura's words stuck in her throat. Her body began to stiffen up as she continued to recall memories of the older Kakashi. Her mouth opened but no sound or words came out. As the silence continued Kakashi's eyes became unclouded and his gaze turned cold. He rested his head on to her shoulder. 

"He's gone. Whoever that was."

Sakura couldn't help the disappointment she felt. She wasn't sure what she had seen in his eyes before - but Kakashi had just closed off to her again. Maybe he had known the watcher was gone finally. It was all an act. "Oh," she said simply - not moving.

"We should stay in here a little longer in case there is someone monitoring outside." He looked across the bath to the changing area. "The dessert you ordered has arrived as well."

Sakura pulled herself off of Kakashi and tried to keep herself hidden from his view. She didn't understand why she was so sad.

Kakashi watched her as she went to the other side of the bath. He had gotten carried away again. One movement and he would have been inside her. He wanted to be inside her. He was still throbbing painfully - aching for her touch again. But it was better this way. She was wrestling with something - that much he could tell. He didn't want her getting attached. He didn't want to get attached to her.

"Don't look, kay?" Sakura called back to him as she approached the stairs. He didn't want to but he averted his gaze for her. He heard her clothing as she put it back on before he glanced back in her direction. She was seated in the changing area with the small cake and tea that he had ordered. Her features were still flushed but she looked sad. That look said it all to him. He needed to put more distance between them. She had been getting her hopes up despite whatever she had been wrestling internally with. It would have been different with any other girl. A girl that was caught up in the lust of the moment he could have easily taken advantage of. But he needed this one at arms length - to wish him the best and send him back to Anbu where he could be alone and unattached forever like he wanted.

Sakura wasn't looking at Kakashi so she didn't see when he crawled out of the water - only heard the splashes. She was mortified at what had just happened. She had felt her former teachers erection. He had had an _erection_ for her. He had _sucked on her nipple._ How was she going to face him in the future.

He had looked at her so differently. Lust and warmth. But as soon as she had seen it, it was gone. Replaced with his hard, cold stare. Sakura finished her cake, not registering any taste, and looked towards the now dry and fully clothed Kakashi.

"Good to go?"

"Ya-yea." She rose from her seat and slipped on her sandles. They walked back the way they had entered towards the bathhouse reception. Kakashi went up to the counter to pay the girls who giggled at him from behind their hands.

"Thank you for coming! We hope you enjoyed your stay," one of the girls said as she accepted their payment.

The other girl held out a small envelope to Kakashi. "This was left here by a man earlier. He said to give it to the man with white hair when he came out with his girlfriend."

Kakashi accepted the envelope with a nod and ushered Sakura out of the bathhouse. It was early evening and the festival was packed around them again. They were only a few short minutes from their hotel which appeared to be where Kakashi was leading her.

Once back in the room he ripped open the envelope. Sakura approached out of curiosity. It was two tickets for a club called Love and a note that read:

**_Sensuality without love is sin. Love without sensuality is worse than sin._ **

**_Come to club Love - an invite exclusive - couples only night club._ **

Sakura grabbed one of the tickets from Kakashi's hand. It was solid black with shiny red writing. The front of the tickets read Love in simple cursive. The back held the address.

"Think this was from our voyeuristic friend?" Kakashi asked as he continued to examine the envelope.

Sakura nodded. "We should tell the others before we go. This is probably where Asuma and Kurenai went."

Kakashi's hands flew through a series of hand signs as he summoned one of his ninken. Sakura had a hard time refraining from reaching out to pet the small version of Pakkun that appeared.

"Yo, who's the bird?" Sakura noted that Pakkun barely looked different - just smaller.

"Doesn't matter," Kakashi said quickly as he wrote a quick note to Genma. "Tell him that we are going to that address - an exclusive club for couples. The tickets were given to us by our watcher - or at least we suspect that."

Pakkun nodded as he walked to the window. Kakashi slid it open and watched as his canine friend hopped out.

"We leave in a half hour." Kakashi said as he opened his pack. Sakura nodded as she went through her own stuff in search of something to wear.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross Posted from FF.net
> 
> In Case of Blue Scroll the Hokage must lock himself in his office and pull his hair out as what he thought were memories of a long lost love turn out to be the memories of a mission he was about to assign his former student, Sakura Haruno.

The club was hidden down a back alley on the other side of town. The area was deserted except for a few couples heading the same way as Kakashi and Sakura. As they got closer the crowd around them thickened. Ahead was a large black sign with red letters reading LOVE in cursive. There was music coming from inside the doors. Two men stood at the door checking tickets and ushering in excited looking couples. As Kakashi and Sakura approached the door a man dressed entirely in white pushed his way out of the club. He searched the crowd before stopping on Kakashi's hair and smiled wildly. He waved at them excitedly before approaching the couple.

"Come follow me! I have been excited for your arrival." He motioned for them to come with him ahead of the long line of couples.

"Who are you?" Kakashi asked as he cautiously followed the strange man. The situation was risky but they had uncovered nothing else to help in their search for the Third Hokage's son.

"I am the owner of this bar! I saw you cute things at the bathhouse and just knew you needed what our club offers!" the man winked at Kakashi as he disappeared behind the doors.

It was dark in the club. Music pounded around them - no different than what Sakura was used to being dragged to by Ino. The furniture was either black or red. Whimsical bubbles floated around the room. There were couches, chairs, and hammocks every which way. Couples were cuddling, kissing, and dancing all around them. The bar was actively distributing fun coloured shots to anyone that walked by. There was a sweet smell in the air.

"Why were you watching us?" Kakashi asked suspiciously. This was definitely the person who had been watching them. The malicious chakra was the same that he had felt periodically over the last few days. Kakashi's nose itched with the strong sweet scent thick in the air around them. Sakura was trailing behind him - one hand gripping loosely at his clothes so as not to get separated. Her eyes were scanning all around them to see if maybe Asuma and Kurenai were here. Her eyes stumbled on a couple in the corner aggressively ripping at each others clothes and fervently kissing. She quickly looked away. There was a winding staircase in the corner. Above them Sakura could see balconies with more seating and curtained rooms.

"There are private rooms hidden all throughout the place for couples that need a moment alone," the man in white explained.

"I asked why you were watching us," Kakashi said dangerously. He stopped walking and glared at the man.

"Because you are too perfect - the pair of you," The man turned around to smile widely at them. There was something in his eyes that was unnerving.

"What do you mean?" Sakura asked. She pulled herself closer to Kakashi as the crowd around her seemed to get more crazed. The feeling of his arm on her chest was nice and warm. He smelt really good. She couldn't help pressing her face against his arm. Kakashi glanced down at her in surprise. Their eyes locked for a moment before he quickly looked back up at the man before them.

"Two Shinobi pretending to be in love. Or at least they think they are pretending!" The man laughed happily.

Sakura and Kakashi barely reacted which both of them registered as unusual. Alarm bells were ringing distantly in Kakashi's mind but he was more interested in the fact that he could feel Saki's breasts pressed up against his arm. Sakura's body was feeling unusual - light and hot. Sakura's eyes searched the man in white - something was off but he just continued to smile at them. Her hand was tingling where it touched Kakashi.

"What are you talking about?" she asked as she tried to ignore her unruly hormones.

The man giggled. "It's written all over you two! Look at him!" He made a gesture to Kakashi. "I'm guessing quite capable too? More capable than the last pair we saw."

"You know where they are?" Kakashi asked. His head had started to feel fuzzy. His hand buzzing with warmth. He could feel it pressed against Saki's hip and shifted slightly to press into her further. He expected Saki to pull away as this was clearly not the time but he saw a smile curve on her features as she pressed into his touch.

"Why worry about that!?" The man clapped his hands as he got closer to the pair. Kakashi felt Sakura stiffen and pull away from him as she prepared for an attack but the man stopped before he got too close.

"Love is in the air, my friends!" He stated happily. "Just go with it."

"Love is in the air?" Kakashi repeated. His body missed the warmth of Saki's body and he instinctively moved closer to her. His arm reached out to touch her against his will as he continued to watch the man before them. The moment his hand came into contact with the bare skin of Saki's shoulder he shuddered. Hot desire crawled down his body and he pulled her roughly to him.

"Love is in the air!" The man laughed again as he watched the shinobi before him.

Sakura could swear she was a puddle right now. Her body burnt with desire for Kakashi. Just her shoulder was aching. His other arm had snaked around her waist. She was trying to maintain her focus but her mind was hazy. What was happening here? Sakura released some of her chakra into her system. Had they drugged them? But they hadn't eaten anything?

"What's happening to us?" Kakashi's brows furrowed as he strained to keep his mind clear. He closed his eyes and rested his head against Saki's shoulder. "Drugged?"

Sakura felt his masked mouth place a kiss on her exposed skin and let out a small groan. Her chakra stumbled on a foreign substance in her blood. She couldn't quite pinpoint what it was but it was definitely causing the erotic euphoria. She breathed in deeply as Kakashi growled and pulled away from her. He turned to attack the man but he was gone. Kakashi began searching their surroundings - trying desperately to ignore the lust building up in his body.

"Kakashi," Sakura said huskily. He turned abruptly at the sound of her voice. Her face was flushed, her eyes glazed over, her lips practically begging for his. "Love is in the air."

"What?" He took a step toward her again - wanting nothing more than to crash his lips to hers.

"It's in the air. We have to get out of here!" She grabbed his hand and began to pull him out of the club. Kakashi's mind was foggy as he watched her bare legs move below the hem of her dress. "Maybe if we get outside," she huffed as her hand began to massage his and she pulled him closer. They tumbled out the door and into the street - fighting against the crowd to get away from the club doors. Sakura continued to lead him back towards their hotel. "It's not stopping," she whispered. "I need to identify the toxin and get it out of our systems."

Kakashi nodded and felt his hand grab at her waist to bring her closer to him. She smelt too good. He needed to touch her. His whole body needed to feel her. Sakura glanced back at him, eyes clouded over, teeth chewing on her lip forcing her mouth into an adorable pout. She unconsciously licked her lips as Kakashi watched her mouth move. Kakashi couldn't stop himself as he ripped down his mask and pulled her to him. He searched her eyes as he softly pushed her towards the wall. He continued to push forward, needing to be closer, needing to taste her. Her back collided with a wall as his hands pulled her closer and his lips made contact with hers.

"Ka-"He bit her lip and started to kiss down the side of her jaw. "Kakashi, we have to get back to the hotel room." Her hands were in his hair as his lips came in contact with her neck. The medic in her was screaming at the pair of them but her body was moving on its own. Her lips met his as she pulled at the hairs on the nape of his neck.

"Why?" He mumbled into her mouth - he didn't care anymore. This fire needed to be put out. His hand reached down to her chest and gripped hard.

"It could be fatal. We - ah - we don't know," Sakura mustered all her strength to push him off of her and continued to run down the street back to their hotel. Kakashi growled in frustration and followed.

Sakura felt like she was being chased. It didn't take long to get back to the hotel but each time she looked back the look on Kakashi's face had become more and more frenzied. As they approached their hotel room door he finally caught up. He nearly slammed into her as he roughly pushed the door open, nipping at her neck and ripping at her dress. Sakura couldn't even stop him if she wanted to. Her own body was reacting - the drug seemingly gaining more control as time passed. The smart, rational, medic inside of Sakura was screaming for her to push Kakashi off - to isolate the active ingredient in the drug and find a counter agent. But that voice was drowned out by the blood pounding in her ears, the small sounds of wet lips smacking against flesh, and the hard breathing of the white-haired ninja who was pulling off the remnants of a ripped sundress from her body.

"Fuck, you taste so good," Kakashi growled. Her core clenched at his words and she let out a guttural groan as he ripped off the last piece of her dress and began licking her skin.

"Kakashi - the - the - drug or - yea," she could barely think straight. All that mattered was his delicious mouth. She pulled at his head to bring his lips up to hers. Kakashi complied happily as his hands began to explore her skin. He quickly ripped off her bra and panties and pushed her back towards the couch. He had shed his shirt at some point and Saki was now placing open mouthed kisses on his chest. He stared down hungrily at the girl below him. Drinking in every detail of her body that he was unable to earlier. He could smell the arousal waft off of her.

Somewhere in the back of his mind he registered that they were drugged. But he didn't care anymore. His hand caressed her flesh as he pushed her down into the couch and slid between her thighs. He flicked at two hardened nipples and watched her eyes close and mouth open in pleasure. He pushed himself against her core - hating the fabric that separated them. Every part of him ached to be nearer to her. It was almost painful. Kakashi bent his head and began to suckle on her breast. He grazed his teeth off of the nipple in his mouth before releasing it and kissing down her stomach.

She squirmed beneath him as he got closer to her core. Her mind was reeling - this was Kakashi! But it felt so good. "The - the drug!" She whimpered emphatically.

"I don't care," he growled. As he moved to kissing her inner thigh as he spread her. Sakura blushed crazily and urged herself to push away - but couldn't. "I just need this. I need you." He reached a hand up to her mouth and pushed a finger past her lips. His eyes were downright carnal as he watched her tongue make contact with his finger. Sakura squirmed again - unable to pull away. Her body burned for him. For the young man before her. Kakashi looked down at her spread before him and laughed.

"Pink? Is your natural hair colour pink?" He mused huskily. He had never seen pink hair before. He wondered why she dyed it. His hand came up to cup her folds.

"AH, kami," Sakura moaned. Hopefully he wouldn't dwell on the hair thing too much. Kakashi pushed a finger inside of her and she knew that there was no going back. Her core clutched around him. Jolts of pleasure shot up her body. There was no way she could stop now. She was going to lose it to the young version of her former sensei. And she didn't even care anymore.

Sakura grabbed his hand to pull him up to her face and kissed him hungrily. He met her pace with his own urgency as his hand continued to explore her. He dipped in another finger and groaned at the wet, warm tightness. Reaching out his thumb he stroked her bundle of nerves and growled as she clenched and squirmed beneath him.

"Please," she whimpered into his lips. Her hands reached down to the edge of his pants and began to tug them down. He hissed as she made contact with his rigid hard-on. She gave him a tentative stroke before gripping him harder.

"Fuck - you're perfect," he dipped his tongue roughly into her mouth and pulled his hands up to grab her legs. This is what he wanted. This is what he needed. He pushed her hand away and maneuvered to her entrance - pushing in slowly. Sakura twitched in pain as he continued to push himself deeper. She looked up at his face as she registered that this should be a special moment. He was staring down at her intently - sharingan eye fully open - taking in every inch of her face as she felt him fill her up completely. His eyes were clouded and tender. Sakura nearly screamed beneath him as he finally managed to sheathed himself inside her completely. Kakashi saw stars and groaned loudly.

"Oh Kami, Kakashi." Sakura snaked her hands around his back. The angle they were at on the couch wasn't helping her need for more contact. Kakashi looked down at her and thought the same thing. He gripped her thighs and picked her up - all without unsheathing himself from her. He moved towards the bed, kissing her neck and lips. He pushed her onto the bed and pulled out briefly only to push back in a second later. They both moaned loudly. He kissed her lightly on the lips.

Kakashi pulled out again slowly and watched Saki's face as he pushed back in. Her face was expressive - eyes clenching in pleasure each time he pulled out or pushed back in - soft pants escaped her lips. She felt amazing. Tighter than anything he had ever felt. His entire body tingled as he began to pick up his pace.

Sakura was in heaven. Never had she felt anything like this before. At first she was scared it was going to hurt the whole time - it did burn as he first entered. But as the pace built up she felt herself growing hotter and hotter. Felt an orgasm building inside herself. She looked up at the lust filled face of the younger Kakashi and smiled goofily. He smiled back and kissed her deeply. This wasn't enough.

Kakashi's hands caressed her breasts as he continued to enter her deeply. "You feel so good." He grunted as he shifted to get a different angle.

"Ahh - yes," Sakura moaned. "Oh kami - Kakashi - ah."

Kakashi pulled her legs up and began pounding into her even harder. Trying to satisfy all the aching desires that had built up over the past week.

"Kakashi -I'm - ah."

He felt her squeeze him tightly and moaned loudly as he maintained his pace. He wanted to empty himself inside of her but couldn't. He wasn't nearly done yet. Saki trembled beneath him - moans escaping her mouth every few seconds. As her eyes opened to stare up at him he felt something clench in his heart that he swiftly ignored. His hands slid up to the top of her head and grabbed at her hair as he pushed as deeply inside her as he could. Sakura screeched in pleasure.

"Ah Saki," He buried his head into her neck and began to suck. One of his hands slid down between them and flicked her bundle of nerves. Sakura's legs tightened around him as her body clenched from the contact. Her inner walls gripped him like a vice causing him to groan loudly. "You like that?."

He repeated the motion and Sakura immediately started to cum underneath him. A loud moan escaping her throat.

"Saki - fuck. You're cumming - ah," Kakashi felt his own release milked out of him by her clenching core. Sakura moaned at the pleasurable growls escaping Kakashi's throat.

Kakashi rested his head in her neck as the throbbing in his body stopped. Their breathing was harsh - bodies covered in sweat. He pulled back to stare down at her - soft euphoric smiles on both their faces. They kissed tenderly.

An unnatural tiredness started to claw at them both as he dropped himself onto the bed next to her - legs entwined. He barely had the energy to pull her next to him.

As blackness enveloped them both Kakashi briefly registered the sound of their hotel door opening. His shinobi senses screamed danger but his body was too numb to do anything about it. He tried to move his head to see who was there and caught a brief glimpse of the man in white from the club before everything went black.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross Posted from FF.net
> 
> In Case of Blue Scroll the Hokage must lock himself in his office and pull his hair out as what he thought were memories of a long lost love turn out to be the memories of a mission he was about to assign his former student, Sakura Haruno.

Sakura awoke first.

The ground was cold and hard beneath her. Her head and body ached. She was groggy and didn't understand where she was - or why she was there. Sakura shifted one of her legs and her core pulsed achingly. Images started rushing into her mind. Club Love - the sweet smell - the hazy euphoria - Kakashi's frenzied face. The lust in his eyes. The feel of his body as he entered her.

Sakura took in a shaky breath as quietly as possible. The last thing she could remember was her body dropping into darkness after Kakashi had finished inside her. The kunochi in her ignored the rising panic as the images of what they had done became clearer and clearer. Something had happened. They had been drugged. Sakura felt the ground beneath her - it was stone. They had been taken from their hotel room. She suspected this is likely what had happened to Asuma and Kurenai.

Sakura opened her eye a crack - not wanting to draw attention to herself if there were enemies near. Her view was straight up into the darkness of a massive cavern. Her skin wasn't as cold as she would have expected for being naked in a cave. Slowly, she moved her hand to her side and felt the material of a long dress. They had been kidnapped and dressed? She still wasn't sure of her surroundings and closed her eyes again. The fogginess was still there - indicating that the drugs were still active in her system. She stretched out her chakra in search of the foreign substance. It was mostly gone from her system now and luckily not fatal. Her chakra, trained as it was to attack foreign substances in her body unconsciously, was making quick work of breaking down the toxin faster than a non-medical shinobi's body would regularly.

Sakura took a deep breath in and opened her eyes again. The room smelt dank. A mixture of earth and corpses. She hoped that everyone was okay. Her knowledge of the future was comforting. Asuma, Kurenai and Kakashi would be fine after this mission. Would still be alive. She didn't know if she would be, but couldn't imagine Kakashi letting anything happen to her. He never had in her own time. She stretched her chakra out into the room - searching for her friends or enemies. She could feel her chakra stumbling over the bodies of numerous dead civilians before feeling the faint chakra signature of Kurenai. It was fading slowly.

Sakura knew it was risky but Kurenai's chakra was dangerously low. She ignored the ache in her body and pulled herself to her feet. The drug was completely out of her system now - her body no longer foggy or tingly. As she looked at her surroundings she confirmed that they were in a massive cave. She couldn't see a way out yet but they had to have gotten in here somehow. There was a wide staircase 20 feet or so from her position that led to a platform. At the top of the platform were a set of statues that looked like they were sharing a tragic embrace.

Sakura continued toward Kurenai's chakra signature and smelt the blood before she saw her. Kurenai was collapsed near the center of the cave - a near fatal wound in her chest - blood surrounding the floor beneath her. Her eyes were closed and Sakura could only wonder how long she had been laying there like that. Sakura quickly bent down and began to heal the wound. It looked like a fist had caused it but luckily the injury had managed to miss her heart. One of her lungs was badly damaged but Sakura's chakra quickly went to work healing it. The woman moaned in pain.

"Saki?" Kakashi's husky voice pulled her attention from her patient. He was standing by the wide staircase. He was shirtless. Sakura suspected he likely just woke up the same way she had. She didn't recognize the white pants he was wearing.

There was a deep, masculine groan and movement that drew both their attention. Sakura sighed in relief as the teenage version of Asuma pulled himself into a seating position and looked around the room.

"Kakashi?" his raspy voice asked. "That really you?" His eyes scanned his surroundings before landing on Sakura and Kurenai. A look of concerned terror flew across his face as he pulled himself up from the ground. "Is she okay?! Kurenai!"

"She's out of danger. Whoever attacked her missed her heart. I've stopped the bleeding and am mending her lungs now. She will need more attention back at the village but for now she will be fine." Asuma came to a stop next to them. Sakura saw him reach out his hands to take Kurenai from her grasp but abruptly dropped his hand and pulled back.

"Good," he continued to pull himself further away from them while looking at his hands. Sakura looked down as well and saw his hand stained with blood. Asuma saw her glance and cringed. "There's something wrong with me. With here." He gestured around them. "We had been struggling against the forces here for days. Civilians didn't have much luck - the men would - well look around at all the corpses."

Sakura followed his gesture. Each of the women had fatal wounds in their hearts. Blood coated the rocks beneath them. Sakura felt her stomach clench but used her years of medical training to push out the fear and disgust.

"How did the men die?" she asked.

"Whatever was controlling them would wear off after the girl would pass. Most offed themselves. Some just couldn't move. We couldn't find a way out. Those that didn't kill themselves starved." Asuma glared down at his hands again. "It became too hard to ignore it - that feeling. The impulse. I tried. I really did."

"You didn't hit her heart though." Sakura said reassuringly.

"Yes. It appears that you were stronger than I thought," a familiar voice said from the top of the platform. Sakura glared up at the man dressed in white who smiled happily down at them. "Almost perfect. _Almost._ "

"What are you - " Sakura was interrupted by the pained sounds of Kakashi.

"No - no. Not - no" Kakashi had collapsed to his knees and was holding his head.

"I think I'll have to increase the effects for this one," the man in white mused.

"What are you doing to him!" Sakura pulled herself up away from the unconscious Kurenai and rushed towards Kakashi in concern.

" **STAY AWAY,** " Kakashi yelled as he put distance between them. He glanced up towards the man in white before appearing behind him and attacking. Kakashi's fists met air as the man dissipated and reappeared next to Kurenai. Sakura turned and began to rush him - arms poised to punch.

"If you want to save her life you'll stop," the man said delightedly. Asuma was clenching his fists in anger but dared not move for fear that the man would kill Kurenai.

"What do you want" Kakashi said venomously. He had begun to walk shakily down the stairs - clutching his right hand.

"You know what I want," the man laughed. "You know very well. I was very lucky finding you!"

Sakura looked back at Kakashi. He had stopped near the bottom of the stairs - eyes glued to his hand. She could tell he was shaking.

"You have to get out of here," Asuma said roughly.

"What does he want?" Sakura asked tenderly as she moved towards Kakashi. At least she could help him. Maybe it was a drug too. Maybe she could get it out of his system.

"Don't," Kakashi said desperately. He wanted to move. He wanted to pull away. He needed to move. He couldn't. "Don't come here," he gritted his teeth and growled.

The man in white giggled wildly - dancing around them. "I'm so close - so close my love!"

Sakura ignored them both and continued to approach Kakashi. He was staring at her eyes desperately. Telling her to go - to get out - to run. He was clutching his hand to his side.

"WHY!" Kakashi shouted at the man in white whose laughter filled the cave.

"To bring her back. This festival. Young couples all coming here for us," he gestured around him. "I've been waiting here. At this shrine built for our love. I've been waiting for the right time. I came back - so can she. I just need her attention!"

Sakura looked up at the shrine again. The statue of the man did look eerily similar to the man dressed in white. The female statue had a wound in her chest similar to the female corpses that littered the ground.

"Are you...are you who the festival was based on?" she asked in a whisper. The man in white laughed harder and waved his hand toward Kakashi. Kakashi growled.

"Saki move! I can't - not you - no not again," Kakashi's voice was filled with terror. Sakura glanced back toward the man she would call sensei in the future. The man who would be her Hokage. The man who had taken her virginity not but a few hours before. His hand was sparkling with the chidori and his eyes were pleading with her to run. She smiled at him comfortingly.

"Don't worry, Kakashi," she said softly as she continued to close the gap.

"Yes! Go to him! Go to him willingly! I knew you were the perfect pair! I knew you would understand," the crazed mans voice filled the cavern around them.

Kakashi's eyes searched hers as she got closer. She wasn't scared. Why wasn't she scared. What was she doing? She should run. Get away from him. He couldn't stop it. He couldn't stop it again. He was going to kill her. It was going to happen again. He was going to lose another one. His dark gray eye couldn't leave her bright green ones. She looked so calm.

"Saki-," he tried desperately.

"It's going to be okay," she whispered as she came within arms length. He watched in horror as his arm came up - completely out of his control. He tried to stop it. He tried to pull away but something was controlling him. Something cold had taken a hold of his body. He couldn't look in her eyes as his hand went through her chest. He knew he was crying but he didn't care. He had done it again. Why did this keep happening to him?

He stared down at his arm protruding from her body waiting for her to fall. But she didn't. Her hands came up and rested on his forearm - pulling slightly - telling him to pull his hand out. His eyes shot up to her face. An ornate, black symbol covered her forehead down to below her eyes. In the center was a soft pink diamond. She winced while trying to maintain a smile as his hand pulled out of her chest cavity.

"Wh-what?" Kakashi's arms came up to her shoulders. Touching her. To her neck. Her pulse was still there. He looked down in amazement as he watched the hole in her chest begin to close.

"Something I learnt from Tsunade," she said softly. "But we can talk about that later." Her hand cupped his face briefly before she disappeared.

Kakashi's eyes frantically scanned the area. The laughter of the man in white had stopped.

"What are- how!?" Kakashi's eyes were drawn to the sound near the center of the cave. Sakura was aggressively attacking the man in white who was unable to get away fast enough. She had pushed him away from the unconscious Kurenai. Asuma was watching - mouth agape.

"Cha!" Sakura shouted as she dove at her enemy. The man in white narrowly avoided the attack and her fist connected with the ground - shattering the rock beneath them. Dust flew all around.

"How did you survive that!" The man shouted. "You ruined it! She won't come now!"

Sakura launched at him again and Kakashi saw that she was too slow for the man. She wasn't able to connect. He opened his sharingan eye to make sure the man was actually there. His chakra looked weird - malevolent. Not wasting time Kakashi launched himself at the man. Sakura's forehead still held the strange symbol as she attacked the man frantically. Sakura continued to distract the man as he looked more and more concerned at the sheer power in her fists. The cavern walls began to shake and break apart as she continued to push him into a corner.

This is when Kakashi saw his opportunity.

"Chidori!" He rushed the man from behind - knowing too well that the man had nowhere else to go. Sakura watched as Kakashi's electrically enhanced fist erupted from the man in white's chest.

"Ah - oh," was all he said before he collapsed. His body dissolving into white smoke. Kakashi and Sakura stared, panting, at the empty space, white smoke twirling around them.

Kakashi looked up at the girl before him and watched as the symbols on her forehead receded. He rushed toward her and grabbed her by the shoulders.

"Are you fucking stupid!?"

She glared at him in annoyance. "What?!"

"I could have killed you!" He stated desperately. His heart was hammering in his chest. The image of his fist pushing through her chest cavity - the feeling of her bones crumbling - the blood on his clothes - the smell of her blood. He gasped for breath.

"No," she whispered. "Kakashi - no. I activated my mitotic regeneration jutsu. It was fine. I'm fine."

Kakashi continued to feel her body for wounds as he looked into her eyes. He didn't kill her. She was fine. But he had felt it. Had felt the idea of losing her. Of losing someone again. He nodded and withdrew from her - heading towards Asuma and Kurenai. They still needed to get out of the cavern. At least the mission was over.

Kakashi's heart was hammering in his chest - the fear had settled in. He could smell it - Rin's blood now. See her face. He couldn't - not again.

"Who is that?" Asuma asked - pointedly looking toward Sakura.

"Saki - a medic." Kakashi said vaguely as he searched the room. Noises from a top the platform drew the shinobi's attention. The statue began to crumble away. He hopped up to the top of the stairs to see a gaping hole in the wall. "This probably leads out."

Asuma picked up Kurenai gingerly and approached the exit. Sakura followed behind - mind miles away.

###### 

The hole had led to a winding staircase that they quickly climbed. Once at the top they found themselves in the empty club - they all held their breath as they left but the sweet smell was no longer in the air. Kakashi and Sakura led the way out of the club as Asuma carried Kurenai behind them. Sakura looked up at the sky to see lights flashing - meteors were streaking across the sky.

Genma, Anko and Pakkun came running down the street towards them. The three had come to the club after realizing that Kakashi and Sakura had disappeared. Gemna and Anko noticed the blood and gaping hole in the dress that Sakura wore but didn't ask about it.

Both Sakura and Kakashi were all business as they came up with a plan to return home. They wasted no time and immediately got packed up to leave. Kurenai needed immediate medical attention - more than Sakura could give without the facilities inside a hospital - and Konoha was less than a day away.

They were back in Konoha within a few short hours. Kurenai safely recovering in the hospital with an ever watchful Asuma. Kakashi had recounted the details of the mission to the third - conveniently leaving out the part where he took Sakura's virginity. Genma, Anko and Kakashi were dismissed leaving Sakura with the Third. Sakura tried to catch Kakashi's eye as he left but he stared at her blankly.

"Is he okay?" The Third asked as the door closed.

"I'm not sure," she said softly.

"You should go to his place to monitor him tonight. He doesn't look stable. I'm sorry for that. I don't think my son would have come home if it wasn't for you and Kakashi but..." the Third sighed sadly. "It looks like this has traumatized him further."

Sakura didn't say anything. She _couldn't_ say anything. He had barely spoken since they left but occasionally she would see his hand twitch and terror in his eyes. He was definitely having an episode.

"I'll go find him," she said.

###### 

Sakura couldn't find him. She had checked all the regular spots - at least for the older Kakashi in her time. He wasn't at the memorial stone, he wasn't at his apartment, he wasn't in the training grounds nor on the Hokage monument reading. Hours passed and she eventually gave up. If he didn't want to be found there was no way of finding him. Besides, she was exhausted. Her legs ached and she needed a shower. She had changed to a clean set of traveling clothes but knew there was still blood smeared on her chest - it was just hidden under her clothing.

As she approached the door to her temporary apartment she wondered how much longer she would be in this time. She couldn't really believe what had happened. That they had had sex. She had lost _her virginity to Kakashi-sensei._ She groaned in embarrassment at the thought of facing him again. What would he even say? What would she say? Sakura opened her door and threw her travelling bag on the ground. It was early evening and darkness was beginning to enshroud the village. Her stomach grumbled in hunger. Should she make dinner or take a shower first?

"Yo."

Sakura jumped and screamed. Kakashi was standing in the archway of the kitchen. Clothes clean - eyes rested. His eye was crinkled in amusement.

"I don't know how you can be so fierce in battle but never know when someone is sneaking up on you in your own apartment," he said as he watched her.

"Maybe a certain someone is just exceptionally sneaky when he wants to be!"

"Hn, maybe."

"Where have you been - I was looking for you?" Sakura didn't know what to do. She hadn't anticipated the awkwardness that might occur with the younger Kakashi. She had only been thinking about the future repercussions. She had forgotten about her attraction. The way he looked at her. He looked fine - which was surprising. She had expected him to be a wreck.

"I got clean. Walked around. Thought." He pushed himself away from the kitchen. His eyes were searching her face. "I'm glad you didn't die."

Sakura blushed and looked away from his intense stare. "Me too. But there was no risk of it - really." She pointed towards her forehead. "I hide the mark usually but I learnt to store extra chakra in my forehead for that jutsu."

"Hmmm," he was slowly closing the distance between them and Sakura felt her heart beat increase. She had told herself that it had only been the effects of the drugs but clearly it wasn't. She was truly attracted to him. Not just sexually.

"How are you?" She asked - trying to focus on something - anything - other than the rising sexual tension.

"Better than I thought I'd be," Kakashi said flippantly.

"Flashbacks?"

Kakashi laughed sarcastically. "Images, smells. The whole thing."

"Sorry," Sakura said and looked at the ground. He was now standing directly in front of her - his eyes staring down at her. She couldn't look him in the eye.

"Don't be," he said softly, a hand coming up to grasp her chin. He turned her face towards his. "You lived."

Sakura wasn't sure she followed his logic. Her face must have shown this because he laughed lightly.

"I thought I lost you too. But I didn't." His hand cupped her face as his other arm pulled her closer to him. Sakura's breathing became labored and heat began to spread across her body. She knew she should pull away from him. For the sake of her relationship with this man in the future she needed to put distance between them. But all she wanted was to be closer to him. The look in his eye caused butterflies to flip haphazardly in her chest and stomach.

"At first it terrified me," he said truthfully - his own heart fluttering in his chest. "I wanted to put distance between us. If it felt that bad to almost lose you. But..." he looked away from her and paused.

"But?" Sakura felt her body lean into him more. Afraid of what he was saying.

"But what's the point in living if I can't experience this?" he whispered as he placed a kiss on her forehead - right where her pink diamond had appeared. Sakura smiled and closed her eyes.

This had gone too far. Way too far. She liked him. She liked him too much. It hurt. She was going to leave him. She would leave him back here. For years. In his mind she was gone forever. He wouldn't know. A tear escaped her eye and Kakashi wiped it away.

"What's wrong?"

The concern etched on his face caused her heart to clench. Rather than answer him she pulled down his mask and pulled his face to hers. He responded immediately - lips caressing her own. She would deal with this when she went back. She just couldn't say no to him or her feelings anymore. She had fallen for him. Unexpectedly - she loved him. She didn't want to. But she did.

"I want to know what you feel like without the drugs," she whispered into his mouth.

Kakashi chuckled as his hands slid all over her body.

Clothes were quickly and frantically shed as they continued to make out in the middle of her living room. Soon the pair were naked but as Sakura reached out to pull the copy-nin towards her she was stopped by his hand on her chest. He was tracing the blood that was the only indication his hand had pierced her chest. Before she could say anything or protest he had pushed her back towards the bathroom. His kisses prevented her from speaking as he turned the shower on and pushed her in. She couldn't help laughing as he began to scrub at her skin - a serious look on his face. He looked up at her and smiled as she bent up to kiss him.

Sakura pulled him into the water and giggled as his hair was soaked. He smiled back at her - hands collecting her hair as he pulled her head under the shower head. She spluttered as the water fell over her face - he laughed.

"Why do you dye it? Pink hair would suit you. It would go well with your eyes."

"It's not that pink," she lied. "It's patchy. Grey in spots and white in others."

"What's wrong with that," he asked as he picked up the soap she had in the shower and began to scrub the blood off her skin - paying particular attention to her breasts.

She laughed as he flicked her nipples. "I don't need to look like you!" She pulled his hands behind her and captured his lips again. She rubbed herself against his already hard cock and moaned. Kakashi grunted in response and grabbed the globes of her ass to lift her up against the wall. He was inside her a moment later. The sound of wet skin slapping against wet skin mixed with the running water. Their pleasured moans grew to shouts as their pace picked up.

Kakashi didn't want this to ever end. Her body was perfect. Everything about her was perfect. He couldn't kill her. She didn't die. She was still here. Still there for him to touch, and lick, and kiss. Her laughter opened up his heart. His legs were beginning to weaken as his climax grew closer. His hands came up to grab at her breasts as she screamed and her core clenched around him.

He grunted as her climax milked him - pumping into her harder and deeper. He felt her bite his shoulder which caused him to laugh and groan as his own climax rocked his body.

They panted heavily as they held each other. Both wishing that this didn't have to end. He kissed the corner of her mouth as he pulled out of her and continued to shower. He made sure to get soap all over her body - just to hear her giggle more.

That night he slept over. The night after she slept at his.

Sakura was ignoring the voice in her head that kept screaming at her to stop. That it was only making it harder to leave. Hard to face her Hokage when she got back. But she wanted this. He needed it. She no longer wanted to worry about the repercussions.

It wasn't long before Kakashi began making hints about returning to Anbu. Sakura felt uncomfortable but knew that she couldn't stop him anymore. He had recovered. She could tell. He was different with her. He wasn't completely closed off. He was still aloof - and always would be - it was just who he was. She agreed to tell the Hokage that he was ready for active duty again. The Hokage had been pleased and said that hopefully soon the time swamp would reappear for her and she could go home. She had left his office feeling sick to her stomach.

She wasn't sure she wanted to go home. He was here. The man she had fallen for. It wouldn't be the same in the future. She couldn't look at him the same way. She didn't want to face that reality when she got there. But she knew she could leave at any time - with little to no notice to Kakashi - and she didn't want him to get worried or think the worst.

She had started to seal important items into scrolls to condense them into a small travelling bag. That way if the swamp appeared she would be ready to leave. But she couldn't leave without saying goodbye - but if she said goodbye he would know. She needed to come up with something to say to him.

She was currently sealing some of the clothes that she wanted to keep as a memento into a scroll in her bedroom when the door creaked open. Kakashi was standing there watching her curiously.

"Going somewhere?" his voice was light but Sakura could hear the concern underneath.

Sakura hadn't come up with an excuse yet. She had been having a hard time finding something believable. She finished sealing the yukata she had worn to the bathhouse, a small blush staining her cheeks.

"I need to find Tsunade," she began, grasping at straws. "I've been asking around to see if anyone knows where she is. I'm sure you've heard how elusive she can be. I've caught wind of her being in tea country but don't know exactly where yet. I just wanted to be prepared to go right away." She smiled up at him. "But don't worry! I'll be back! I'll try not to be gone too long!" Her heart ached painfully.

"Hn," Kakashi took a seat next to her on the ground. "Why are you packing that yukata then?"

Sakura blushed furiously. She didn't know how to respond. She glanced sideways at him - he was staring at her thoughtfully. "Well, I like thinking about that...night. The other dress was ruined," she wasn't lying. That was why she was taking it with her. "I just wanted something to remind me of you while I was out searching. I hope to be back soon but it could be a few weeks."

"If you wait a few days I could go with you," he offered. "I'm sure you know that I've been reinstated and I just came to tell you that I'd be leaving on a mission soon."

She smiled weakly at him and averted her gaze. She could feel tears in her eyes and didn't want him to see. "If you are back in time... for sure," she said softly.

His hand landed on the back of her neck and he kissed her head tenderly. "I won't be hurt - I promise."

She couldn't help the tear that fell into her lap. Kakashi smelt the saltiness from his position. He was glad she had told the Hokage he was ready again. He missed working. But he knew she was worried - he was worried too. It had been a long time since he cared for something. But that just gave him even more of a reason to come back.

Kakashi reached into his pocket, pulled out a small box and set it on her knee.

"What's this?" She asked, wiping her face.

"A memento," he watched as she opened it. It was a silver necklace with a small sapphire pendant in the shape of a bird.

Sakura turned to him and kissed him abruptly on his masked mouth. "But I don't have anything for you!"

He smiled at her as she pulled down his mask and kissed his bare lips. His tongue dipped into her mouth.

"When do you leave?" she mumbled into his lips.

"I should have been at the gates already," he laughed, nipping at her bottom lip.

Sakura froze momentarily before pulling herself away from him - a wry smile on her lips. "How late are you?"

Kakashi shrugged and pulled her further into his lap. "An hour at most - I'm not sure what time it is. I was looking for something to give you." His hands had found their way up her shirt. She slapped his hands away playfully.

"Kakashi!"

He smiled at her and stood up. "I should probably be going but I'll be back in a couple of days. It's not a hard mission." He kissed her mouth again before walking towards the door.

She smiled at him and nodded. Hoping to Kami she was here when he got back. Her heart was breaking but she couldn't show it. As the door to her temporary apartment closed she fingered the necklace in her hand, idly wondering what his excuse would be to his team at the gates. Tears fell freely from her eyes as she fell backwards on her bed. She sobbed unrestrained until exhaustion took her and she fell asleep.

###### 

Sakura rolled over but instead of sinking further into the soft blankets of her bed her arm sank into something wet. She opened her eyes with a start and nearly burst into a fit of tears at the scene around her. She was in the swamp. It had happened so fast. She glanced around quickly and felt a bit of relief at seeing her backpack next to her. At least she would still have some things. The necklace he had given her was still clutched tightly in her hand.

Sakura felt her tears stain her cheeks as she began to walk in a random direction. He would be so hurt when he got back. She was gone. He wasn't going to find her. Sakura wondered how long he had looked for her. If he had approached Lady Tsunade about her or demanded information from the Third. Either way he wouldn't get much information.

The swamp quickly turned into forest and she could see the familiar gates of Konoha not too far in the distance. She wasn't sure what time it was here but judging by the sounds coming from the village it was likely close to mid-day. Her heart began hammering in her chest out of anxiety. She was going to have to report to the Hokage. _To Him._ She hoped she could get in without running into her friends. She didn't even know how long she had been gone for. A few hours? Days? Months?

She passed through the gate and nodded at Kotetsu who waved happily at her while pointing at her head. She waved at him and shrugged as she walked by. It didn't take her long to reach the newly constructed Hokage tower. Her legs dragged beneath her. A headache began to settle in from the time travel that she attempted to heal with her chakra as she walked. Sakura mused that it must be around lunch as the hallways were practically empty.

Eventually she arrived at the doors to Kakashi's office. Her stomach was flipping uncomfortably. This was going to be incredibly awkward. Sakura took in a shaky breath and knocked.

"Who is it?" Kakashi's voice was muffled but still managed to make her heart dip. Was it going to be different? How would he react?

"Um. It's - it's Sakura," she clenched her fists at her stuttering. There was silence on the other end of the door for a few moments. The sound of a chair screeching made her jump.

"Anbu- leave," Kakashi's voice was closer to the door now. A few more tense moments passed before the door was pulled open and she was face to face with her former sensei. She looked at him nervously. His eyes searched hers with an emotion she couldn't quite place before he gestured for her to enter.

Her shoulders were stiff as she came into his office and stood in front of his desk. Kakashi didn't move as he watched her. Eyes taking her in from head to toe.

It had been 15 years since he had seen that hair colour. 15 years since he had seen her. 15 years since she had disappeared - had left him. Or at least that's what he had always thought. Kakashi's own heart was beating in his chest - a feeling of anxiety he hadn't felt since his younger years. Sakura looked back at Kakashi - waiting for him to take his seat so the debriefing could begin. He could see the nervousness in her eyes. She had always been expressive... Sakura...Saki.

"Ahem- hn-well," he cleared his throat awkwardly. Sakura's eyebrow quirked up in disbelief. Neither said anything.

Kakashi didn't know what to do in this situation. For him it had been 15 years since he had seen the girl before him - sort of. To think Sakura actually was Saki. The girl had always reminded him of her. To the point that it scared him and he pushed her towards Tsunade. Sakura had been gone a week which had given Kakashi plenty of time to think about what he would do. To think about her. Sakura. Memories from when he was 17 had flooded his mind that week. Details that had always been confusing about Saki suddenly making sense.

He had had 15 years to get over her. 15 years of searching for her as his heart longed for her. 15 years to regret never telling her how much he had loved her. How she had saved him. But it had only been a few short hours for Sakura. Her hair was the same colour he remembered - the off hue violet-brown. His mouth quirked in a smile as he remembered how funny it had been to discover her pink pubic hair.

Neither of them had moved - neither knowing what the boundaries were.

"I looked for you," Kakashi finally said. His chest tightened uncomfortably - a feeling he hadn't felt since his teens.

Sakura looked at him sadly. "I didn't know what else to tell you... I didn't want to leave without an explanation of some sort."

"Tsunade got so sick of me pestering her," he laughed. Tension leaving his body as their conversation started to come naturally.

"I bet," she giggled back. She was happy he wasn't mad. She had been scared he would be mad. "I'm sorry I couldn't tell you."

Kakashi watched her intently before walking closer to her. He wasn't sure of their boundaries. He didn't know if there were still lines to cross. To think he had taken his own students virginity. "It was the mission, Sakura. I know now. I understand now."

"I didn't want to hurt you. I- well -," her cheeks blushed furiously and she averted her gaze. He was the Hokage. It was _Kakashi._

Kakashi watched the young woman before him. She was who he had been searching for all these years. Who his heart had ached for. How had he never seen it before? He hadn't truly been looking at Sakura to see it.

It was like those 15 years never happened. Like he was 17 again. His nose picked up her scent - the smell of him on her. How had he never noticed what she smelt like before this? His mind drifted to the evening in the bathhouse when he had seen her naked for the first time. She had known who he was to her. But still - she had responded. He ached to hold her again. But his position - their positions - it could ruin either of their careers. But he had loved her then. Still loved her now.

"What will the village say," he said jokingly. She looked up at him startled. Her lips pouted in confusion. Kakashi smiled and pulled down his mask. Sakura gasped. Kakashi closed the distance between them. "I thought about that this whole week."

Sakura's heart was thumping wildly in her chest. She could hardly believe that he was saying these things. It felt like she never left. "Me too," she agreed sheepishly. "I was worried that ... that we couldn't -"

Kakashi dipped his head down to kiss her. Fuck it. He had given his life to this village. The universe had sent her back in time for him. She was his and he wasn't going to care anymore. Sakura whimpered in his arms.

"I fell in love with you 15 years ago and never told you," he whispered as his lips left hers. "I looked for you for years. You saved me. I don't care what other people think or what happens anymore." He smiled down at her.

Sakura sighed and wrapped her arms around his neck. "You look basically the same."

"So do you," he laughed. She pinched his neck and pulled him into another kiss. It didn't matter that he had been her teacher. To him she was the girl he had met 15 years prior. He pushed her backwards towards his desk as his hands gripped her hips.

She tasted the same as he remembered. Sakura's ass bumped against the hard surface behind her as they continued to kiss fervently.

"If-I," Kakashi began kissing down her neck. "Had known - you wouldn't- be back - I wouldn't have left without feeling you again." He pushed her backpack off her shoulders.

Sakura couldn't believe what was happening to her. Nothing that had happened to her lately was believable. As her backpack hit the floor they paused and stared at each other. Both were breathing heavily. Sakura's lips tingled. Kakashi bent down and nipped at her neck - hands grabbing at her clothes.

Sakura began to panic as she looked around. They were in the Hokage's office. He was the Hokage. She was the Hokage's old student. Kakashi felt Sakura freezing up in his arms.

"Don't," he murmured into her neck. "It's been 15 years since I've tasted you. I'm not waiting any longer." Heat rushed to her groin as his hands lifted her onto his desk. "Besides - I've learnt a few things." He smirked at her cockily as he removed her clothing.

Sakura couldn't help feeling bashful. She knew he had seen her before - but that was before he knew who she was. As her shirt fell to the floor followed by her bra and shorts she fought the urge to cover herself. His eyes were drinking in her skin as he shed his own shirt. Sakura began to touch his chest - feeling all the scars that were new to his body since she had last touched him. His hands slid down her sides, hugging her curves, feeling every inch of her he could before stopping at her thighs. She looked up at him nervously as he stared down at her core.

"The pink hair," he laughed, remembering the first time he had seen it. He pushed her thighs apart with his hands and stared at her.

"It's embarrassing," she said softly. He smirked at her - pushed her further into the desk - and bent down to his knees.

"Wh-what are you doing," she tried to pull away desperately.

"Something I never got the chance to try. Something I've wanted to do," his tongue licked against her folds. She mewled and squirmed. He held her to the desk with his arms as his tongue began to explore her core. He flicked her clit and watched how the girl that got away - his former student - his woman - writhed and moaned. He inserted a finger and groaned at the wetness waiting for him. But he wouldn't rush this. He would fuck her on this desk. He would fuck her everywhere. But he would savor it.

He inserted another finger as his tongue continued to do circles around her bundle of nerves. Sakura's moans grew louder and her legs clenched around his shoulders. He really hoped no one came to his office. He hadn't locked the door and she was being very loud. He felt her clenching around his finger and sucked on her clit hard. Sakura screamed as her climax rocked through her body - staring down at the white haired man. His lips glued to her. His eyes glazed over with lust. She smiled groggily at him.

As he pulled away from her, fully intending on shedding his pants and sheathing himself inside of her, they heard voices in the hall. Kakashi threw on his shirt and grabbed Sakura's clothes and bag. She glared at him and ran under his desk.

"I can't hide here naked!" She whispered angrily. He tossed her clothes under the desk as he pushed his chair in. At least the desk would hide his hard on. Hopefully whoever came in didn't have a good sense of smell.

"Kakashi!" shouted a familiar voice from the hall. Kakashi groaned.

The door opened and in rushed Naruto. Kakashi couldn't believe his luck. Hopefully the blonde was too oblivious to notice.

"Did you hear that Sakura is back?!" Naruto started excitedly. Kakashi fought the urge to shake his head as Sakura's hand clutched at his thigh angrily.

This was ridiculous. The last thing he needed was for Naruto to find out this way. For anyone to find out this way. Kakashi wasn't going to give her up but he may keep it hidden for a while.

At least until he was done ravishing her body. He smiled under his mask.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross Posted from FF.net
> 
> In Case of Blue Scroll the Hokage must lock himself in his office and pull his hair out as what he thought were memories of a long lost love turn out to be the memories of a mission he was about to assign his former student, Sakura Haruno.

There wasn't much room beneath the Hokage's desk. Sakura had barely managed to get her panties back on as Kakashi threw her pack and clothes under the desk after her. Sakura was gripping Kakashi's thigh angrily as she heard Naruto start chattering. Why hadn't he locked the door?

Probably because he didn't expect the make-out session and - well - other things. Sakura fought back the urge to groan in despair. She was happy - beyond happy. He loved her still. He had waited 15 years for her. It didn't matter how weird some of the details were. All that mattered was that they still felt the same way for each other.

"She hasn't been gone that long, Naruto." She heard Kakashi say above her. It was weird being below the desk. It was a pretty bad hiding place considering the fact that Kakashi was the Hokage - supposedly the strongest shinobi in the village - and Sakura was a Jonin. But even if she had teleported out - or left out the window - she would have been naked. She was still mostly naked. Sakura didn't think she could get her shirt back on without bumping her head on the desk.

"Yea, but Kakashi-sensei! Teme is back too! We should go to Ichiraku together!"

Sakura felt Kakashi's leg twitch at the mention of the Uchiha. She smiled - was he jealous? Was he bothered by that? She didn't have any feelings left for the Uchiha - especially not after traveling 15 years into the past. Not after having fallen in love with the man whose legs she was currently between.

"I'm sure she needs a break," Kakashi said. What he really wanted to say was that he was going to keep her all to himself for the next few days and he didn't want anyone bothering them.

Sakura could still feel the moistness of his mouth on her. Her body was still flush with the residue of her orgasm. Apparently Kakashi was still excited about it too - she tried not to giggle at the sight before her. With the way he was sitting she could see his erection pushing against his pants.

"Nah, Kakashi! Sakura needs to come - so do you! We haven't all been together in ages! And Kami only knows how long the bastard will stay around for." Naruto's voice was always a mixture of shouting and talking.

"Naruto - she's - ugh," Kakashi froze - she wasn't. He bit back a moan and looked down at his desk - she was. He didn't know what to do - he couldn't believe it.

"She's what?" Naruto had approached the edge of his desk now and was looking at him in concern.

"Ah, well she's gone home" Kakashi was having difficulty forming words.

Sakura was trying not to laugh below the desk. She wished she could see his face. She had decided to torture him for pushing her under the desk. For not locking the damn door. She had pulled out his erection and given it a soft stroke and was very pleased with his reaction. He had said to her that he had regretted not tasting her for 15 years. It had made her curious to know what he tasted like. Would he like it? Would it taste gross?

"Naruto -" Sasuke's voice drew their attention to the door. Kakashi wanted to slam his head against the desk.

"See!" Naruto shouted happily. "We are almost all together again - Come on Kakashi-sensei, let's go find Sakura!"

"Sorry, work to do," Kakashi said while waving at his relatively clean desk. Naruto and Sasuke looked around with eyebrows quirked. "Seriously - busy- ahhh." Kakashi tried to wack his leg against her - her fucking tongue. Her tongue. Her mouth. She was. Her mouth was.

"Is something wrong with you?" Sasuke asked slowly - eyes glaring at him.

"Yea, you look weird," Naruto agreed.

Kakashi fought back a moan as Sakura's mouth engulfed him. His brain was short circuiting. "Hmm? N-o. I - well no- I don't feel good." He felt fantastic. "I think I'll go... take a.. nap." He could barely get the words out - Sakura's tongue was doing swirls on the tip of his cock. If he had told himself a week ago that the mission he was about to assign his former student would result in this he would have laughed in his own face.

"But what about our Team 7 Reunion!" Naruto whined. Kakashi brought his hand up to rub his brow and bit the inside of his cheek.

"Maybe tomorrow," he let out a slow breath before looking back up at his two former students. Naruto had already turned away, yelling about finding Sakura, but Sasuke lingered. His eyes glanced from his face to the desk and around the room before a smirk crossed his features.

"You always were a dirty old man," Sasuke said - turning to follow Naruto out of the office. He looked back briefly at the door and gave Kakashi an evil look. He didn't close the door.

Sakura didn't stop.

"The door is still opened," he tried to whisper at her. He tried to pull away but her mouth was pulling him in deeper and deeper.

Sasuke knew someone was under his desk. Judging from his reaction he didn't know who was under the desk which was somewhat comforting.

Kakashi let out a pleasured sigh as Sakura picked up her rhythm. If she wasn't stopping who was he to complain? He watched the door and prayed that no one came in. He began to lean further back in his chair and glanced down into his lap.

Sakura was staring up at him, his cock as far into her mouth as she could get it. The whole image was too much for him. He glanced at the door as his hands came up to her hair. He caressed her head and let out a low moan.

"So-ugh- naughty."

She hummed against him and pushed down further - tongue flicking along the bottom of his shaft. He couldn't take it anymore, "Ahh- fuck - Saki-" He tried to pull her off of him as his orgasm shot out of him but she pushed his hands away. He groaned and fought the urge to close his eyes as his cum shot into her mouth. Kakashi quickly glanced towards the door - no one was coming in. Hopefully no one heard. Sakura pulled off of him and smiled at him while wiping her mouth.

Kakashi slumped back in his seat and stared at her - wide eyed. "Why did you do that?" he demanded lazily.

She giggled as she grabbed her shirt and pulled it over her head. "I wanted to pay you back," she whispered - fully aware that people could be in the hallway. Kakashi watched as she slid her shorts back on. He needed to get them out of his office. He didn't want any more interruptions.

He quickly grabbed her arms and pulled her to him - hands flying through hand-signs. The pair disappeared in a cloud of smoke only to reappear in his apartment.

"I'll pay you back for that, you know." He said darkly, pulling down his mask and kissing her cheeks.

She flushed briefly before pushing him back towards a large chair in his living room. "I look forward to it."

He had already pulled most of her clothes off again. His shirt gone before he landed on the chair. He loved how aggressive she was being. He pulled her panties off as her arms stretched out to pull off his pants. Their lips reconnected as she straddled his lap - her hand reached down to position him at her entrance.

"Kami," Kakashi gasped as Sakura slid herself down his cock. She moaned and buried her head in his shoulder. Kakashi gripped her hips and pulled her down closer to him. "I almost forgot what this felt like," he whispered.

Sakura laughed. "You mean to say you haven't had sex in 15 years?" She pulled her head back to look into his eyes. Her heart clenched uncomfortably as she anticipated his answer.

He smiled roguishly at her. "Well - no - but I had forgotten how great you felt." He watched a flicker of sadness cross her features before it left and she rocked back on his cock - causing them both to moan in unison.

"You're it though," he said between breaths as he pulled her up before slamming her back down. She whimpered. "Nothing ever compared to you. To this." He began thrusting upwards as she braced herself against the arms of the chair.

"Kami - this feels so good - Kakashi," she was pleading now. Kakashi turned her around so she was facing away from him - lips caressing her neck - hands gripping her chest. They built a steady rhythm - flesh slapping against flesh - he suckled heavily on her neck leaving marks he knew she would have difficulty hiding. Her hands were desperately trying to cling to anything and everything around her. Kakashi chuckled as one found grip in his hair. He slid his own hand over hers and began to direct it between her thighs.

She moaned "Wha-Kaka-shiii. No-"

"I'll teach you," he nipped at her ear as his fingers guided hers.

"I know how," she stated but didn't pull her hand away.

"Then show me what you know." He pulled his hand back and began playing with her breasts again. As Sakura began to stroke her bundle of nerves her walls clenched around him.

"Keep doing that,' Kakashi moaned into her ear. A bolt of electricity shot through her at the noise. Sakura mustered all her strength to clench her internal walls again and Kakashi groaned loudly as he began to thrust into her more erratically. His hands were clutching her breasts - using them to stabilize her body as he continued to thrust upwards. Sakura's hands had wrapped around his head - he growled - she felt herself pulse around him.

"Kami- Kaka-kaka-i'm-so-"

"Gonna cum for me?" Kakashi bit her neck. "Cum around my cock."

Sakura's body began to shudder as Kakashi somehow managed to pound into her even deeper. Her legs gave out and Kakashi's arms picked her up - holding her against him as he continued to slide in and out of her. She clenched around him as her climax shot through her like electricity. She screamed out as her eyes saw stars.

Kakashi growled into her neck, "Fuck - yes - milk it out - ugh take it," he thrust into her hard and deep as he released inside of her. Both collapsing into the chair further.

Sakura sighed as she melted into the man below her. This was like a dream.

"I think I'll take a vacation," the man below her mused. Sakura hummed in response. "And I think I'll assign you to a new mission."

Sakura turned her head to look at him inquisitively.

He smiled at her and placed a kiss on her cheek. "That way everyone will think you are out of the village."

Sakura laughed and pulled herself off of him. "As long as I am paid."

Kakashi slapped her ass as she walked away - causing the young girl to squeak in surprise. "You'll be compensated accordingly, of course"

Sakura quirked an eyebrow at him as he stood and sauntered towards her. The look in his eye sending a heated jolt down her body. She didn't care what happened after this. Nothing could ruin this for them. He reached an arm out for her and she pulled away laughing. He moved forward again and she moved back. He smiled haughtily at her as she turned and began running down the hallway. He chased after her - heart light. Not an inch of darkness left.


End file.
